Beautiful Nightmare Series CloudxLeon
by xxbloodyinsanityxx
Summary: Cloud battles with his sane and insane when he thinks Leon a mystical creature is real. This is a VAMPIRE fanfiction series inspired by Anne Rice's work. Please visit my profile for my link to my DeviantArt profile for all my fanfictions.
1. Beautiful Nightmare: Leon's Prologue

It was the first time anyone has ever struck me the way he did. I knew that no one else would put the same warmth in me. No one could unleash the same rebirth inside me....He made me feel...like I belong...

I didn't know his name...or his voice...or anything about him...He just walked through me and took half of me away with him. I knew I had to be with him...That I would be with him.

The weather was unpredictable in May; especially in the town of Winchester. The day was still and birds sang a soft lullaby in the dead of the afternoon. The sky was a dense blanket of white and gray clouds; so smooth that it look like a picture from a book.

I remember the reflection of the sky showing in the hidden lake. The waist high weeds surrounded the lake. You could walk through them and not notice the secret water. Near there was the path no one knew existed.

It was an ancient olive grove that smelt of wet oak bark and dead leaves. The grove's path was perfect after all those years of no one setting foot on it. The olives never fell from the tree. I remember how quiet it was.

I crouched in the towering olive tree on the twisting branch. The damp dark bark's scent filled my calm mind. The ravens perched in the near by old oak tree; singing the song I know too well.

The day let off an eerie whitish blue fog in the air that drifted like a kite flying through the grove. Everything was still. Listening to the sad song the raven sang. I fingered the pale green leaves of the tree and that is when the hunt began.

I heard a sudden crack of a twig down below. My grey-blue eyes widen at the sight of someone on the path. No one ever came here. No one dared to. He didn't know of the dangers that lie ahead.

It was a tall blond teen with crystal blue eyes. He had a pair of headphones in his ears and he was walking...alone. I moved closer down from the canopy of the tree to get a better look.

My movement was so graceful that a pin dropping in a busy airport was louder than me. The blond didn't notice me and a headphone fell out of his left ear. My eyes never left him. I never seen anyone like this before.

A raven hopped down the gnarled oak branch and whistled a haunting tune. The blond turned off his headphones and shook his hair. A smell arose my senses and my eyes turned black.

I clinched my teeth but the sense was too much for me. My hands choked the branches as I tried to fight away. His smell was so. . .good. I closed my eyes and tightened my clinched teeth. It was too much for me to handle. I hissed and I caught the blond's attention.

He turned his head sharply around with his eye piercing hard at the tree. He saw nothing. I was already far off in the endless acres of olive. I was gliding from tree to tree with my feather-like steps.

My eyes could still see him through the maze of tree branches. He was staring straight ahead at me but I knew he couldn't see me. The blond kept a still face and breathed quietly through his nose.

He turned around and went away from the dark route. The fog twirled around his quickened steps. He knew something was wrong because the ravens stopped their lovely song.

My eyes focused on him and my face was as hard as stone. His scent drove me mad. My teeth clinched together until he was completely out of my sight.

I leaned back against the long branch and put my hands behind my head. I looked up at the sky's blank face. My pale skin remained frozen like ice. I rubbed my still marble face with my hands.

It happened so fast but it was so much for me. I inhaled the damp scents of the woods and tried to regain my control. My eyes were still as black as the depths of the lake.

I began to recover and my body remained lying against the branch. My mind tried to focus on something else but it was following the path and what he was doing now. My mind imagined the future...of what will happen.

The blond was like a ghost...like an angel...It has been so long since I've seen someone who I knew...It has never happened...something like this could've never happened. Ever. But it did.

My mind slowed and my face was fierce yet unreadable. I will never forget that day. It brought me on a different road in my journey. All because of him.

I put my hands back behind my head and they pressed into the pale moss of the wet tree. The rain would begin. I could sense it. My eyes turned back to their normal state of grey-blue.

The hunt would begin. I couldn't refuse it. I had to find him. He was the one. He is the one.

He was unaware of what could've happen. He was unaware of what had happened. He was unaware of what will happen.


	2. Beautiful Nightmare: Cloud's Prologue

I never knew that I would. . .feel this way. . . about a guy. . .feel this way about someone like him. I've heard tales before; but they were all meant to frighten. He doesn't frighten me... he makes me feel...safe... He makes me feel. . . . different.

It was not too long ago; around the time of May when the ravens spoke their curious song. I left my old house at the break of dawn. I couldn't sleep a wink that previous night...not after that dream.

I kept waking up at odd hours in the night. I finally decided to stay awake. I rested my head against the warm pillow and kept reviewing my dream.

The dream...was a bit of a nightmare...I still recall every detail of the fright it brought over me like the chilling feeling of someone breathing down your back. In my dream...I was walking through Dead Raven Path.

The place was so fantasy like...even more so in my dream. There was bluish cemetery fog encircling at my ankles. The sky was dense with white and light grey clouds that made the day so eerie you couldn't tell what time of day it was.

I was following an old raven; probably as old as the 300-year-old grove. It kept looking back at me with those outraged red eyes. It lead me down the endless grove and then it took off above my head.

I spun around and straight in front of me was...him. He was at least 50 feet away from me with his back turned to me. I gazed over him.

He was standing as still as an alert hound. All of his body was as perfect as a desire. He stood as stiff as a statue like he was unable to move. He was dressed in a deep ruby velvet jacket that stood out in the bleak forest. His finely tailored black pants looked like no dirt has ever touched him.

His hands were at his side and they were as ivory as a mourning dove. He had dark brown hair that cascaded a little less then half way down his back. I was holding my breath in the silent grove.

The fog froze in place like a warning to go back. The old raven flew over and landed on the deep velvet covered shoulder. It's scraggly feathers fell off piece by piece until it was a shiny black coat of new feathers. The raven was going back in time to a baby then it turned into a egg.

The egg disappeared out of thin air and he kept his back turned toward me...as still as a Greek statue. I cautiously took a step forward and I stepped on a vulnerable twig. His head whipped around at me and his eyes were as black as venom.

I felt my breath fade from me. His face was so dream like....even more perfect then someone could ever imagine. But his eyes looked at me....full of fury and hate.

I shot out of the dream and was sitting up in my dark bedroom. The digital clock gleamed: '3:09'. My breathing was unsteady like I was about to be attacked....by him. Outside my window it was a black sheet of nothing. I shivered in my bed and I stayed up until the grandfather clock on the first floor bellowed its chime at six in the frozen morning.

I am the person who looks up instead of down. I never thought anyone had a more peculiar or complex mind then I have. I notice every single detail everywhere.

I see the ant that is climbing on the flower in a field of daisies. I notice the dewdrops on the canopy of the tree. I see the black lizard in the shadows at midnight. But I didn't see what would happen next.

I found myself strolling out of my wooden house. I closed the door as my automatic routine and the white paint was slowly peeling off of the dirt brown wood panels. It was so sunny yesterday but today is as reminiscent of October days.

The sky was just like my dream. I felt the feeling of fear crawl up my spine like a cunning spider. I was dressed in a basic attire. Dark blue jeans and a dark grey shirt that matched the clouds covering any trace of happy atmosphere in the sky.

My blond hair was a bit tangled and my eyes had a shade of light purple around them from my tough night. My black and white sneakers stepped off my porch steps followed by a creeping shadow of wood creaking a deafening sound.

My mind argued with itself for being such an idiot to do this. My stroll passed my retro cream orange bike. I debated whether or not to ride it. I decided to walk and a knot twisted my stomach into a choke hold.

I knew my dream had to be faced for it to leave my future nights of sleep at peace. I walked quietly down the paved country road. The breeze faded away and the oak trees stood tall and crooked.

The few neighbors I have were still asleep in their warm houses; while I am outside in the brisk chill of fresh morning air.

I turned down the hill and walked on a dirt path until it grew narrow against the clawing blackberry bushes. I stopped and looked at the old sign with a rusty nail pinning it to a thin oak tree.

It was a oak sign in a shape of an arrow that read 'Dead Raven Path'. A bird flew in front of me and I caught my breath in a fearful gasp. I clinched my chest with my light hand. I sighed and closed my eyes.

I told myself it will be okay and the rumors are just from crazy old folks whose generation has been rotting in this town for centuries. My feet began to walk down the dirt lane.

The ground puffed up it's pale dust as I stepped silently through. There were levels off the olive grove on the high hill. They looked like deep giant steps and the fog waterfalled down them.

There were a billions of tiny white flower heads littering the ground beneath my feet. Each of them were as small as a baby's finger tip. I kept my eyes down. I've never been on this path. . . but my dream was an exact replica of it.

I looked up at an ancient oak tree. Probably older then the olive grove. I put the small white headphones from my iPod in my ears to distract me from the unnatural deceased course.

The air smelt damp from the rain last night. It smelt like wet straw and eucalyptus leaves. . . and death. The ghostly fog licked at my shoes like a toxic snake's tongue. On the lethal path through the grove the roots of the dark trees labyrinthine around my feet.

I stumbled over one of the olive roots that stuck out of the ground. I caught my footing and looked back at the root. It looked like a black serpent body in the dirt. I stepped forward and crushed a twig.

I jumped and froze in place. My hand was grabbing my heart. I was relieved and scowled myself with a string of profanities inside my head. My walk continued and my left headphone popped out of my ear.

It began to feel like a strange dark shadow was. . . watching over me. A raven spooked me as it hopped down a wild oak tree branch. It looked at me with wide scared eyes.

My blue frosty eyes fixated on the black raven. As it moved, its feathery coat let off a reflection of the gray sky from above. Its wing gleamed a slight silver. The raven sang to me...a haunting tune.

I put away my iPod and watched the bird with too curious of eyes. I was surprised it wasn't afraid of humans...it probably never seen anything besides the wildlife that comes out in the grove.

A dried leaf fell on my head and I shook my hair. The raven stopped and looked behind me. It was staring at something with an enormous amount of concern in its beady black eyes.

I heard a hiss from above and my head shot around to the canopy of the olive trees. There was nothing. I swear I heard a sound. My blue eyes studied the trees and I stared at it sharply. Nothing but branches.

The woods grew in a deep silence. I could feel it closing in all around me. I quicken my steps back home. The fog spun around me like a dancing spirit.

I was soon away from the death trap. My heart raced and my blood swam like a shark on a chase through my veins. I took one last look back at the sign pointing to the dark path.

That was my first encounter and I still have the dream. My mind replays the scene of horror over and over like a broken record. That hiss rang through my ears like cathedral bells.

I couldn't pin prick what had quite happened. I didn't see anything. . .or anyone. It was so unreal and haunting. The mossy olive trees reached out of the ground like black fingers but nothing sat in them.

The experience was unforgettable. It was a dream. . .more like a nightmare. . .but a beautiful nightmare. I can't take my mind away from the man in my dreams. It seemed so strong and vivid. . .like I'll meet him someday.

Anytime I closed my eyes. . .he is there staring right at me from my dream. His cold death stare from inky black eyes. His beauty doesn't make him a beast. . .or a monster. He is a miracle, a fantasy, a wish, a hope. . .a dream.

He is everything but I never met him once in my existence. . .yet he seems so clear in my thoughts. I didn't know his name or anything about him. . .but he kept re-entering the door to my dreams. Then he would leave my mind during the day. Yet I know he will return anytime I close my lazuline eyes. He will return to me. . .I can feel it.


	3. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch1

Cloud's POV:

My feet smacked swiftly against the paved road as I made my way home. I fumbled up the porch steps and caught my footing. My shaky hand reached at the very old silver key on my necklace and I put it through the keyhole.

I twisted the key and bursted through the door like a murder was on my track. The door shut behind me and I leaned against it. My body slid down and I sat with my head tucked in against my raised knees.

The moment of silence didn't calm me instantly as it should've. The sanctuary of my home felt less of a safe house as time wore on. I closed my eyes and his image flashed like lightening through my mind.

My eyes flew open and a loud ringing came from the phone. I crawled to the coffee table to the old tan phone. I must of looked pretty ridiculous because of my teen body shaking in fear. My hand grabbed the phone and I put it to my ear.

"Hello?" I said as I tried to steady my voice. "Cloud! Where are you?! You need to get here ASAP! Your job isn't going to do itself!" My boss yelled at me. "I'll be there right away, Mr. Peterson." I obeyed. "Yeah yeah. Your paycheck is going to reflect your tardiness." He said and he ended the call.

I rose to my feet and ran out the door. My hand grabbed the doorknob and I locked it safely behind me. The silver key swung on the black chain on my neck.

I couldn't afford to waste time. My feet galloped down the porch steps and I opened the door to my soft pale green truck. Light rust sparkles flew off the door as I slammed it shut. I snatched the keys out of the cup holder and slipped one in the keyhole.

The 50s truck let off a loud roar as I started up. My foot pressed carefully on the gas pedal as I pulled out on to the street.

I shifted the stick and put it in drive. A neighbor of might was retrieving the mail from his black metal mailbox. I waved a hand at him like a friendly neighbor should except my blue eyes remained on the road ahead.

My truck was at its maximum speed of 50 mph as I drove into the beginning of the town. There it was. 'Peterson's Hardware' the sign read. I sighed deeply as I pulled into the small parking lot.

I turned off the truck and put the keychain in my jean pocket. The last thing I wanted to do was go to work today. I stared at the store in front of me and my eyes closed. The face of him appeared out of no where in my mind.

A tap fiercely knocked at my window. I opened my eyes and my heart skipped a beat in fear. It was just my boss. He was staring at my with his bushy grey eyebrows. "What the hell are you still doing in there?! Get your ass inside!" He bellowed.

I opened my door and he stepped aside. It's not like anyone came to shop here. Once in awhile you would get a person in there just asking if they could use the restroom. I exhaled and slammed the door shut.

Mr. Peterson looked at me with an expression that read 'get-to-work-NOW!' My hand pushed the metal bar on the front door open and I walked over to the cash register. I put my name tag on that my boss gave to me when I started the job.

He didn't want to put in money to getting a name tag for me so he gave me the name tag of a previous employee. The name tag read 'Emily'. I complained to him when he gave it to me but he was too cheap to get a name tag that read 'Cloud'.

So here I stand. Drowning under the burning florescent lighting. My fingertips drummed against the counter as my head was looking down at the buttons of the cash register.

Who was that person in my dream? And why did he look at me that way? I don't know him. . .it was just a dream, Cloud. Get a hold of yourself. Stop thinking about him.

My mind kept wondering off at his perfect image. His monstrous black eyes penetrated through my heart. The eyes were full of hate.

"Excuse me." A voice said. I looked up and say a man in a red flannel shirt. "May I help you?" I asked. He nodded and he scratched his scruffy greying beard. He opened his mouth and I tried not to gag at the tobacco smell.

"Just this." He said and he put an odd shaped white plastic pipe on the counter. I have no idea why I work here. I don't know anything about hardware or being a man. I was raised by my aunt after my dad died out in the woods.

All the country ranger told me is that they found him in the lake. He was walking on thin ice like the dimwit he is. He fell in the ice water and died.

My mother died while giving birth. My hippie father named me Cloud because of the darkness that swept over her. Not a very pleasant thought but the name can't be changed.

I scanned the price tag on the pipe and the green digital numbers appeared. "That comes to 7.19, sir." I said. The guy dug in his pocket and his brown suspenders clung to his shirt. He put a crumpled ten dollar bill on the counter.

I picked it up and tried not to be disgusted of the same tobacco stench it held. He must be a smoker. I smoothed out the dollar and collected the change from the register.

My fingers quickly counted the change and I dropped it in his waiting palm. "2.81 is your change. Would you like a bag for...this?" I had no idea what this pipe thingy is called. So much for employee of the month.

"Naw. It's fine...Emily" He said as he took the pipe in his dirty hand. His amore left the store as he walked out. "My name is Cloud!" I hollered after him with slight agitation in my voice.

I ripped off the name tag and through it under the counter in anger. I hated this place. I hated this town. And I hated my thoughts being haunted by a beauty I don't know.

My elbows slumped on the wooden counter and I raised my chin on my hand. The clock ticked loudly and the lighting above me had this annoying mosquito buzz.

I fixed my blond hair and leaned against the wall behind me. My tired eyes tried to stay focused, but my heavy eyelids refused and closed.

"Cloud! Wake up! And where is your name tag?!" A voice shouted at me. I quickly opened my eyes and saw Mr. Peterson glaring at me with Mr. Potato Head angry eyes. "Sorry, sir." I said and I felt a rush of fear fly on me.

His eyes narrowed at my shirt. "You are not wearing the name tag. That is against store policy." He snapped. My eyes shot at him with anger. "Well it's not my name. I'm not even a girl!" I said sternly.

"Did you keep your skirt on this morning? You sure act like a girl, Cloud. Or should I say Emily. Since you work here!" He said with an axe like voice. I felt the insult chop at me and I slammed my fist down on the counter.

I startled him. Mr. Peterson looked slightly afraid but confused. He has never seen me stand up for myself. I'm always the quiet one who notices many more things a second then he will in his whole life. I kept my fist so tight that my knuckles turned as pale as the white light above me.

"Don't you fucking dare call me a girl. I'm more then a man. I am greater. A true man has emotions that your sick bastard self doesn't notice. A true man wouldn't be letting his life go to waste over a store that loses more money each month to electricity bills. You are not a true man! You're a monster!" I yelled in his face.

He smirked at my effort and said, "Get back to work." My eyes shot up at him. "I..QUIT!!" I shouted with my fist slamming again on the counter top. I walked away in the store and his voice called to me. I ignored it.

I picked up three cans of white paint and sopened the front door. "You can't quit!" Mr. Peterson called out. My eyes darted back at him and I said, "Watch me."

I went through the door and gentle tossed the paint cans in the truck bed. The door creaked as I opened it then I slammed it shut. My fist was still tightened. I've never acted like this before. It was all because of him on my mind. His face didn't leave my thoughts. His beautiful face.

My truck screeched out of the parking lot and I drove home. I couldn't believe what I just did. This is not like me. I need to. . .I have to stop thinking about him.

The tires rolled over the dirt as I pulled in front of my house. I got out of the car and my eyes caught a scratch on the side of my truck.

Great. Just what I needed. My truck is already in bad condition. I hardly have the money to spend on it.

I hauled the paint cans out of the truck bed and placed them one by one on my porch. The white porch swing moved back and forth in the afternoon breeze. The sky was still cloudy and the grey grew darker.

My eyes closed and I saw his face again. My eyes bursted open and my fist clinched at my side. I slammed the truck door closed in anger. Why is his face in my mind?

The day ceased in more grey clouds as I repainted my house. My mind tried to drift away but the damp air made me think of his stone lips. I couldn't escape it.

The paint brush sweeped up and down as I put the last touches. I stood back to look over the fresh paint. I placed the brush in the ultra white paint. I jumped off the porch and walked over to the lonely mailbox.

The air blew through the trees and rushed through my hair. I turned my head around and saw a figure sitting still on the porch swing. My body froze like a deer in headlights.

His black eyes shot up at mine. He caught my breath and my throat felt like it was closing up. He narrowed his black eyes at me and a grin emerged from his icy pale lips.

I woke up and realized I had fallen asleep. My face was against the wet wall and I pulled myself away. I touched my cheek and I found white paint on my fingertips. Great. Just perfect.

I steadied up on my clumsy feet and looked over at the moving porch swing. It was empty. My mind flashed the image of his devilish grin and his ashy black eyes filled with hate.

Images of his strange outift flew through my mind like missing pages in the wind. His pale skin glowed against his 18th century attire. It was Victorian or Edwardian clothing. . . and he radianted in it. He looked like royalty. His brown hair shined off a slight copper colour. His face. . .so gorgeous.

The paint brush slipped out of my hands as the wind picked up. My blond hair was flying all over my face from the wind. I combed my fingers through my hair as I closed up the paint cans. I stroked the wet brush on the wall, over the spot were my face was.

Soon I had everything away. I peered up at the sky and thunder boomed in the distance. The wind whistled through the trees and crows scattered like burnt piece of paper in the sky.

I went inside the house. It had a strange amora. Like old moldly house. It was stuffy like I haven't been inside in three years. I walked up the wooden stairs to my room.

His cold stare went through my mind as I turned down the tight hallway on the upper floor. My hand gripped the bronze doorknob. His smile sent shivers up my spine.

I opened my bedroom door and it was dark inside. My head rested against my soft pillow. I scratched off the remains of the white paint on my face. My eyes grew heavy. Lightening flashed outside and my window was open.

My body turned over to shield the air coming through my window. The room was dead black and lighting flashed again. The tree outside my window reflected a shadow of itself on my bedroom floor.

Thunder boomed and I groaned at the loud sound. I put my pillow over my blond head of hair. Lightening flashed again and another shadow was added. It was in the tree. It was a dark figure.

My eyes opened and I caught a glimpse of it. I heard a hiss and I shot upright in my bed. I turned the light on. Nothing was in the tree.

I moaned and my head plopped against my soft pillow. Nothing to fear. It's just my imagination playing tricks on me. The tree scratched against my open window. Just go to sleep now.

My eyes closed and my ears stayed alert. I didn't hear anything besides the rain pouring down. I drifted off to sleep and his face appeared out of the dark corner of my mind.


	4. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch2

Leon's POV:

I couldn't fight him away from my thoughts. My iron grip was pulling on the olive tree's branch. He was just so breathtaking. And his smell. . .magnificent.

My eyes were foggy grey with flacks of blue shimmering inside them. I leaped down from the tree and landed crouching on the dirt path. My body straightened up and I took off. I couldn't fight him off. He is just so. . .gorgeous.

I followed his sweet scent down on to the paved road. My romance was being unleashed from its dark cage. I've never felt like this about anyone before. I knew he was the one.

It lead me to a small two story white country house. The house looked older then the rusty 50s truck next to it. I looked up and spotted his bedroom window. I climbed up the oak tree and peered into his dark chamber.

His blond head lied in a slumber against his feathery pillow. The rain beat down on my light face. I stepped silently and sat in the open window on the unstable edge. The wood creaked but his face didn't move.

The blond wiggled his nose slightly and I gazed over him in awe. His face was like an angel carved it out of sunlight. So beautiful. So enchanting. . .perfect.

Lightening flashed and his eyes caught my cascading shadow on his floor. He flipped on the light and I was gone on the roof faster then a blink of an eye. The blond's alarmed aqua eyes shifted back and forth until he turned off the light. His face went back to rest.

I snuck into his room without a sound. His smell surrounding me; it was so hard to contain myself. I slowly wondered to his bed and bent down to his face. I admired his features. So smooth. I felt a smile form on my lips. It's been forever since I've done that.

My pale hand cupped his chin as I stared over his soft face. I released my hand and slid my arctic finger down his jaw line. He shivered. I knew he was dreaming of me…but why?

The blond's mouth opened and his sugary breath exhaled. The smell drove me insane. My other hand was down at my side and clinched in a firm fist. I tried to stop all the emotions stampeding through my mind.

He made a quiet hum and moved slightly on his pillow. My eyes forced into an unwelcoming onyx. My face turned stiff and bitter. He smells so good.

I traced the outline of his fragile lips and my strength weakened. He is too much for me to handle. He is everything and more.

He muttered something that I couldn't quite understand. I felt another small and delicate smile form on my lips. My faint skin tensed up as his eyes fluttered open.

The blond saw a glimpse of me and his petrified eyes stared in shock as I escaped out into the night. I grinded my teeth and my jaw tightened. I'm such an idiot. It could never work. But why did he dream of me? I must know.

Dawn came and I sat in a tree on Dead Raven's Path. What have I done? How could I think that it could work between him and I? He would run away in fear if he knew what I was. He could never find out if I wanted him to be with me.

My grey eyes let off no hint of blue. All of the emotions raged inside me. My face stared sternly off into the distance. I had to be with him.

The rain finally ceased and I leaped down from above onto the muddy path. My hand touched the floor as I aced my drastic jump from the towering oak. A raven flew away from me. It could sense my anger. Why did I have to be what I am? Why couldn't I be human again?

The mud disappeared from me as I quickened my step through the grove. A white graveyard mist rose in the air and my pale features glowed among it. My posture was so gentlemen like you could put a minivan on my head and my body would never flinch.

My model-like stride lead me to his house. His bike was gone. He wasn't home. I scowled and let out a hushed growl. I couldn't wait to see him. . .I wanted to see him again.

My cold stare followed the bike tracks away from his house. I pursued the trail like a hunting bloodhound. If I frightened him again I would regret it for the rest of eternity. My hands remained in fists at my side.

Soon I saw the blond far ahead of me but my sharp eyes could see every detail on him. His sparkling eyes matching his bright aqua shirt. It all contrasted to his cream orange bike that glided down the paved road. He was heading back down the trail and right toward me. He didn't see me but I saw him.

I hesitated. I didn't know what to do. I didn't think I would get this far of into my crazy ideas. The breeze blew from the dark clouds. His scent tickled my nose.

My eyes blinked to a demon black. I closed them and bite my white marble lip. I couldn't do this to him. I couldn't. . .I'm a monster. It's just too hard.

The blond didn't notice me and I opened my black eyes. He was still riding along with a straight yet delicate face. My frail image tried to maintain my strength. I took off back to the grove. I had to keep him safe. Away from me. . .I'll see him again.


	5. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch3

Cloud's POV:

I dreamt of him again. It felt so real the dream. . .like he was actually there. I was he was. . .he is just so. . .beautiful.

My dream was so vivid yet dull. Everything was in dark shades: ashy grey, stone black, fading blue and deep red. It was in a place I've never seen before. It was a round white room made out of old wood with haunting lighting. And there he was. Sitting in the giant oval window.

In my dream. . .I felt my heart racing when I touched his shoulder. He turned around and his eyes went from murky blue to a striking black. I couldn't move; I was so scared but at the same time I felt safe.

He closed his eyes and put his icy lips on my neck. I felt his lips kiss my neck so softly. . .it felt so good. Then he put his face close to mine and opened his black eyes. He traced my light pink lips with the tip of his chalk white fingers.

Then his eyes grew outraged. He pulled his fingers away like he was just burnt. Then his eyes shot up at me and he growled. His eyes were angry yet I could see he was miserable on the inside.

In my dream, I felt my heart sink when he told me to go away. I stepped away and he was fighting the beast inside him away. Then I told him. . .I love you. He looked up at me with his eyes. They turned into a soft grey with a rim of dark blue.

He tensed up like something was eating inside him. I couldn't understand what he was saying. He was muttering something so fast and his eyes were shut. Then he told me to leave and my dream faded.

I woke from my dream and my eyes caught the unbelievable. It was him from my dreams. Then the beauty left in an instant out my open window into the stiff midnight. I thought I was still dreaming but when I pinched myself it hurt.

He looked so frightened when I saw him. His shocked eyes were a gentle grey with blue rays in them and they had a faint violet colour under them. His outfit was so elaborate. Gold lacing on the black velvet jacket and fine black pants. His silky deep hair let off a slight reddish bronze in the bright moonlight. What...who is he?

I stayed awake by my questions and shock until my eyes couldn't stand staying open. I decided to go back to sleep. My eyes closed and I fell into a black sea of sleep. He returned in my dream. But he was a statue in a castle. I touched him and he was engulfed in a blue fire.

A rooster crowed a piercing screech. I woke up and made a long yawn. The sleep gave me an odd energy. I felt like I needed to get out of the house. My feet touched the dry wood floor as I sat on the edge of my twin sized bed.

I stood up and the old floor squeaked under me. I realized I was wearing my clothes from the day before. I touched my lips. They felt strange. Like I kissed an electric outlet. The 16th century lord immediately flared in my mind.

My clothes fell to the floor in a heap. I rummaged through my closet and found the full laundry basket. I tossed the clothes on top of it and recalled his eyes again. They are so mysterious and fragile against his flawless face. I've never seen such grey eyes with blue in them.

I remembered his furious black eyes. I felt a lump in my throat as I strode over to my mossy green dresser. His milky white skin fits him perfectly with his glossy dark chocolate hair. My fingers brushed through my shirt and I chose a aqua t-shirt to match my eyes.

My blond hair was surprisingly not tangled up in knots. I smoothed out my shirt on my chest and I slipped on a pair of jeans the colour of his eyes. My fingers zipped and buttoned then my electric blue eyes saw the open window.

I slowly stepped to the window as the sheer white curtain dances in the light breeze. My face remained at a nervous expression. I peered out the window and into the oak tree. The dim branches were bare and naked. He wasn't there.

Maybe I am just crazy. That's what I get for living in the small town of Winchester. No I couldn't be crazy. No one, even me, could imagine a beauty like him. He is an angel. . .a dark angel. How could he be so remarkable and still be human? It's impossible.

My front door had trouble closing but I managed to shut it. The wooden frame is getting too old. I locked my house with my 17th century looking key from my necklace. It hit back on my chest as I was done locking the door.

The cream orange bike was waiting for me by the dead creeping vines. I released the kick stand and rolled my bike to the edge of the flat dirt driveway. The sky was gloomier then ever.

As I sped down the road with ease I felt a tingling mist from the breeze. It was probably going to rain again. I had an odd feeling in my gut. Like butterflies. . .no that wasn't the feeling. It was like. . .the feeling of being followed.

My bike's wheels bumped sharply over the uneven road. I swerved around the pot holes to avoid my accident magnet moments. My eyes dared to looked behind me but nothing was there in the thick fog.

Soon I got to the dead end were the thin dirt route to Dead Raven Path. My foot skid against the ground and halted me to a stop. The trees swayed with memories. I bite my bottom lip as I hesitated.

The warm blue eyes of mine stared blankly at the thin path. Should I? No don't. You are just being stupid. This is all a joke. Your mind is playing tricks on you, Cloud.

A raven swooped out of no where and bit the tip of my ear. I yelped and rode off in a hurry. I pressured my ear between my free hand as I steered with the other. I took my hand off my poor ear and looked at it. Blood. Not good.

My feet pedaled faster and faster until I reached my welcoming house. I braked the bike with landing my foot on the ground. The rain began to fall and it was pouring in buckets. I put my bike in the crammed gardening shack and stumbled over the terra cotta clay pots.

I could feel the warm liquid dripping down my ear. I put my caring hand on it again and felt a gash big enough to leave a scar. I winced at the painful stinging from the slash on my ear.

My feet jumped over the puddles in the rain as I hurried to get back to the house. Some blood was going down to my jaw bone now. The pain hurt me so badly. "Ahh." I said with my eyes tighten up.

I sauntered up the porch steps and my socks were soaked inside my shoes. I fidgeted with my silver key in my right hand while my other bloody hand was shielding the cut.

I pushed it open with my shoulder and it stuck a little before it whipped wide open. I slipped off my shoes without using my hands and wiggled my wet socks off. The tips of my hair began to dry as I rushed to the bathroom up the hazardous wood stairs.

I kicked the door open lightly and turned on the water. The pipe spat out ice water and took awhile for it to warm up. The red body liquid rinsed off my shaky hand and twirled down the drain. I wrapped up the tip of my ear with white tissues and squeezed on it until I cried.

The bleeding stopped and the trash can was filled to the brim with soak red tissues. My head felt a bit light. I have never been the brave one. I was always the one in school who skipped the days of school when we dissected dead, rotten animals.

I held back my gag and put my clean hand on my forehead. The room was turning black. I knew the feeling. I was going to faint. This has happened before.

My legs felt limp and I struggled down the hallway in the darkness. I felt like I was going to fall back into the darkness. I clung against the wall and found a doorknob. My eyes couldn't see anything. It was dark and my ear was throbbing.

I tripped on the corner of my carpet and fell to the ground. My head was growing lighter as my fainting grew near. I won't let me faint. My hand reached up to the nightstand and I pulled myself up. I dropped onto my bed and fainted.

I'm not sure what exactly happened. I woke up and I couldn't tell if I was dreaming. My room was dark. It was night time and the crickets were singing far away. I touched my forehead and rubbed my eyes.

My blanket was on top of me and it was hugging me nicely. I heard something outside my window. It wasn't the wind or the rain. It was a raven singing. My eyes widened in fear. Bad sign.

I looked at the clock and it was 2:54 am. A shadow swept across my bed. My eyes shot up and they met a pair of black eyes. It was the raven.

I let out a sigh and shoed the bird out the window. "Go on. Go!" I said with waving my hands. It snapped its pointy beak at me and I jumped back a little. "You can leave him alone now, pretty bird." I heard a voice say.

I traced the voice to the tree and the bird flew out in a wink. The tree was empty and bare. Did that really happen? I pinched myself and I didn't feel it. No...I'm just dreaming...

My eyes drifted off back to sleep until the same rooster crowed. I tossed and turned but the rooster wouldn't stop. I finally looked at the clock. The hands of the small clock were pointing at 10 o'clock.

The heavy sheets felt so comforting but my mind forced me to get out of bed. I needed to find another job since Mr. Peterson is a total jerk-off. I still had the same clothes on from the day before because of me fainting.

After rummaging through my drawers, I decided to change into a white and black striped t-shirt and a different pair of dark blue jeans. I heard a light knock at my front door. I moved my sheer blue curtain and peered out the window. I couldn't see who was at the door.

There was more knocking and my head turned away from the window. I sauntered quickly down the stairs and reached the door. I opened it and a red head had his head down. He looked up at me and smiled.

His eyes were a lighter blue than mine. He didn't look familiar. "Good morning." He said with a smooth smile. I felt my throat close up and my head began to have a light feeling. Please don't faint. I closed the door behind me and stepped onto the porch.

"Hi." I managed to say. He was dressed in a semi open silk light grey dress shirt and a black suit jacket with matching black pants. "I noticed your car is...well in bad shape." He said and he turned his head to look at the car. I saw he had a long red pony tail and he was one of those few guys who could pull that look off.

I followed his lingering blue eyes and I saw my truck was completely destroyed. My jaw dropped and I grabbed a hand full of his jacket on his shoulder. I pulled him toward me face to face. "What the hell did you do to my car?!?!" I yelled in the rural land. My voice echoed off the wooden panels on the porch.

His eyed widened in fear and he went from a confident model to a helpless sheep. "It was the lightening from last night. I swear I didn't do anything." He pleaded. I let go of his shoulder and let out a sigh.

"Sorry. I've just been having a tough week." I told him and I sat on the porch railing. A smile bloomed across his face and his eyes seemed so magical. "Heh tell me about it." He said as he stood next to me.

"I just quit my job. It was too boring." I said. He smiled his pearly whites. "Been there. Done that." He said then spun his metal ring around on his index finger in the awkward silence. I couldn't look at him without drooling over his features so my eyes focused to his distracting ring. It was so old looking with it's dark silver colour yet the strange words on it were shiny. Latin maybe.

He picked a jasmine flower off a bush in my small white pot. His eyes closed as he inhaled the fragrant floral smell. I bit my lip and felt like an idiot. A beauty came out of the blue and was standing right next to me and all I am doing is staring at him. "My name is Cloud." I told him and I got off of the railing.

His blue jay coloured eyes perked up at me. "Oh I'm sorry. The names Reno." He said and he gingerly shook my hand. I held on a bit too long then took my hand away and quickly turned away to my car.

The old truck had black burns and broken windows. It looked like it came from a storm in Hell. I rubbed my forehead. His black shoes stepped toward me and I felt his hand on my shoulder.

"I'm sorry. If you ever need repairs just come into town and see me." My heart started to beat faster and I could feel his breath on my as he talked. He took his hand off my shoulder and I turned toward him. He had a crisp white business card between his index and middle finger.

I took the card and he smiled. "Don't worry, Cloud. I won't rip you off." He said. I put on a little smile and said, "Thanks Reno. It is Reno right?" He let out a warm laugh. "Yeah. But don't call me my brother's name. I would never want to be called Axel." Reno says with a grin.

"Oh. That's your brother?" I asked. He rolled his sky blue eyes and smirked, "I got the good genes. Heh you know him?" I felt more comfortable around the red teen. "Yeah. We went to high school together. But I never saw you." I said.

Reno smoothed back the top off his wild bangs. "I refused to go to the same high school as him. I went into martial arts training in a private high school down south." He said with a smile. I couldn't find words to say and he stepped down the porch.

He walked down the small path leading to the road. His posture was perfect yet he strolled casually with his hand in his pockets. "See yeah, Cloud." Reno said. I could sense he was smiling even though his back was toward me.

Reno got on a fancy black and silver motorcycle that hummed instead of roared. He sped off in the direction toward town. I took another look at my truck and frowned. "Well. I guess I'll ride my bike." I said. My bike looked like old gum under a high school bleacher seat compared to Reno's batman-like ride. I locked the front door with my silver key necklace.

He may have been handsome but nothing compared to the mysterious person in my dreams. I got on my orange bike and the cold air snapped at my tender skin. Goosebumps raised on my arms as my feet rotated the bike's pedals.

I made my way to the Local Market and there were venders with there baskets full of plump fruit. The place smelled like a summer garden but the day was as dull as fall mornings.

I walked my bike by my side through the lot of venders. I recognized the familiar food sellers. The basket on the front of my bike was filled to the brim with my 'groceries'. My wallet only had a few bills left in it.

Soon the day became colder. I felt my fingers go numb in the icy air. As I rode my bike home I wiggled my fingers to make them warm again. Through the oak trees I saw my boring old white house.

I carried the plastic bags off food up to my door and I made it under the safe porch before the rain started. My hand twisted the doorknob and it was locked. "Duh." I said and I reached for the key around my neck. It was gone. My necklace was gone.

My full hands carefully set the plastic bags on the splintery wood floor and I searched for my necklace. I got down on my hands and knees as looked for something silver. "Dammit." I said.

I stood up and felt my hand above the door frame for a spare key. All my hand collected was dust and cobwebs. I smacked my hands together and the dust particles flew off. "Where is it?" I asked and my azure eyes grew desperate.

"You dropped this." A voice said to me. I looked up and my eyes met a pair of river grey eyes. His porcelain skin was so flawless and his lips were a very pale pink. That face. . .it's him.

He held my key necklace in his frozen stone hands. My face was as still as his. "Thank you." I managed to say and he dangled the necklace away from him. I took it and his hand released the black cord.

"Good day." He said as he turned and began to walk away. "Who are you?" I asked and I felt stupid for asking. His body stiffened and he turned around. His face was unreadable.

His grey sky eyes met mine and lingered. "You may call me Leon." He said and his face was so strikingly beautiful. My wrecked car could've exploded at the sight of his beauty.

I gazed at him in the rain. His rich deep brown hair grew wet and his outfit was different then my dream. He wore a cream coloured V-neck long sleeve and fitted black pants.

My eyes couldn't stop staring and I pinched my hip. It hurt. I wasn't dreaming. He was there. Right before me. My dream. His body stood as still as a statue in the rain and his eyes looked away. HIs feet made tiny splashes through the puddles as he walked away.

"Wait!" I called and I stumbled off the porch. My silver key went flying and he caught it was ease. My pants were covered with mud and I felt a blush on my face. I tried to hide my embarrassment away from the gorgeous model.

I peered through my blond hair and he was standing above me with soft grey eyes. He was careful not to touch me as I got up and took my key from the dangling black necklace.

I put the necklace on and smiled. His face tightened and he looked irritated with me. I stepped toward him but he began to walk away again. My feet stood in the mud as I watched Leon leave.

"Thank you!" I called to him. I don't know if he heard me because he kept walking without a sound. I didn't want him to leave. I ran off and slipped.

My body slid onto the road and I felt a sharp pain in my elbow as it slammed on the cement. While I was lying on the ground, I saw him far off with his eyes wide with fear at me.

I heard a familiar sound. The crash of lightening from the murky clouds. The bolt struck a tall oak. My elbow hurt.... I couldn't move. The tree came timbering down. I was helpless as Leon's mystic eyes watched my nearing death.


	6. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch4

Leon's POV:

My grey eyes stiffened at the sight before me. He was lying helpless on the ground while the blur of the lightening and the crack of the broken tree was occuring.

I saw the fright in his shocked azure eyes. The oak descended like a graceful needle with swaying branches to him... and I could imagine the split second of the morbid incident coming to life. I couldn't let him die. . .he doesn't know what it is like to lose a precious human life. . .

I ran for him and snatched his waist with both my pallid hands. The tree fell down and missed us as I swept us elegantly away.

He let a scream out and his head fell limp to his chest. I stared at him with a twisted, bitter expression. His face was so soft and peaceful like he was in a sleeping beauty trance.

Cloud rested in my arms and flinched every time we made skin contact. I was careful to keep my icy hands on his clothing and not touching his bare arms. I stared straight ahead and tried my best to ignore him.

I set him down beneath a pale mossy oak tree in his front yard. I couldn't carry him any further without going out of control. He had fainted but his pulse was still racing like the thunder in the sky.

My fingers felt his warm clothes as he was in his state of unconciousness. I decided to wait for him to wake up from the fright. I could've let the tree hit him. . .that was what was suppose to happen. How events called the time of death, it is so strange. . .but I stopped him from dying. . .I saved him. . .

His eyes fluttered open and he catch me by surprise; although my face stayed the same marble statue appearance. I was sitting a safe three feet away from him but that didn't help my longing for him. He was trembling like a scared cat on the ground.

He opened his mouth but no words came out. "Am I dead?" He asked me. I smirked inside my head but my face remained stone cold. Humor did noting to distract me from his speechless scent.

"No." I said dully. He blinked a couple times like he was trying to focus on something. "Are you okay?" I asked the blond. He glared at me with slight grimace. He could tell my voice sounded to monotone for that sentence.

The blond sat up and rubbed the back of his dizzy head. "I'm not sure." He admitted. The blond shifted his head around and looked a bit bewildered. "What just happened?" He asked me with a fret in his tone.

I started my lie, "The tree missed you and you fainted." He was quiet for a moment as the wind whistled overhead and made the porch swing creak.

His eyes glowered...he didn't seem to believe me. I stood up and said, "You need to rest." I wanted him to complain so my lie would work.

He shook his head and said, "My head. . .feels weird." My hands were balled into tight fists as the wind carried his scent up to me. My eyes averted to an unwelcoming black.

I turned my back toward him and spoke, "You should go inside." My voice had a hint of a warning. I heard the leaves rustle under his feet as he stumbled on his shaky feet. I made my way toward the empty street.

"Leon!" He called out. His voice was a little scared. I turned around and saw him on the ground again. I sighed and went back over to the clumsy blond.

I hesitated at him. "Get up." I demanded in a quiet voice. I was trying to control the rage bottled up inside me. He looked up at me with confused sapphire eyes. "I'm. . .too dizzy." He said.

My eyes couldn't look at him but it didn't help me. My soft hand extended down to him. He took it and I pulled him up with ease. I led him to the door and opened it for him.

As soon as he had something to cling on, I fled through the door. He stood there with a perplexed gaze as he held on to the small table for support. "Bye..." He muttered out. I was at the grove now and the ravens scattered across the stormy sky.

My nails dug into my skin as I tightened my fist. The trees tangled above me as I lost control. I ran far into the dense forest. I couldn't let it happen.


	7. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch5

Cloud's POV:

My breathing stopped. My eyes closed. I tried to not think about the pain….my death…All I could think about is him.

When I opened my eyes I thought I was dead but I realized I was on the dried up leaves on the side of the road. Leon saved me….I knew he did….I could still feel his cold arms around me when I close my eyes. It was like he left an invisible mark on me.

I sat in my bland off white bedroom on my creaking bed. My wide eyes were staring at the goldfish bowl but my mind was off in a trance. Thinking. What happened?

How could he save me? The tree was going right above my face on the road and he was long gone from me. I felt the smoking bark brush my face....it was right there.

But here I am with a heart still beating. I touched my fingertips to my quivering lips. The temperature was dropping. I felt lost. I had to get out.

I jumped a little in my bed as the rain started to fall. I couldn't sleep...Leon was all in my mind...all I could think about.

The sound of the huge raindrops on the roof shook me out of my thoughts. The noise had me in shock. My startled heart felt like a drum solo in my chest. "That's it! I am officially crazy!" I told myself in the off center hanging mirror. My reflection stared back at me.

"What are you looking at?" I smirked. I got off of my quilted bed and picked up the goldfish bowl. The poor orange goldfish was floating at the surface. I sighed and took him with me.

I set the goldfish bowl in the passenger seat and buckled my black seatbelt. My hands stayed at two o'clock and ten o'clock on the steering wheel. I turned my head and saw the dead goldfish. Floating…motionless…dead like me…

"Leon…" I said. The name sounded so sweet of my tongue. Like melted chocolate. I revved the engine up and he roared to life. I sped down the road as fast as lightening...the lightening that almost killed me this morning.

But…he saved me…

"Why would he do that?" I asked. No one could hear me but the dead goldfish. "It's not like he cared…the way he looked at me…it made me feel so…unwanted…" I said and kept my eyes focused on the road.

I probably looked like a spy who was about to shoot someone. The unmoving eyes…the straight face…the cold, icy look. "Leon." I muttered again.

I slammed on the brakes as if a deer was in front of the car. Except it was a lake. "Shit!" I yelled and my truck jolted to a halt. My neck whipped back but not enough damage. My breathing was shaky and flying out of my mouth at a quick speed. It was visible in the freezing air.

I turned the car off and pulled up the emergency brake. It cranked up and echoed across the foggy pale periwinkle lake. I opened the door and my nice shoes squished in the muddy shore.

"Great." I said sarcastically and waving my hands up at the white sky. "You wanted me dead? Well I have an imaginary dark angel looking over me!" I yelled up at the heavens. 'Leon.' I thought. _'He must be real....'_

"How can he be real? I dreamed him…and today he saved me." I said and I pinched myself. "I'm awake." I said. My voice rang in my ears like high pitched buzzing noise. I closed my door and trenched through the thick mud to the other side of the car. I yanked the door open and grabbed the fish bowl.

"Sorry little guy." I said apologetically. I poured the bowl out into the lake and the goldfish drifted away. I was getting soaked by the second as the rain ran down from the paper white sky. No clouds, just white.

I heard a deep chuckle behind me. "Leon?" I asked and I turned around with wide eyes. It wasn't him. Reno sucked in on his cigarette and pierced his lips into a kiss. The smoke blew out.

His hypnotic eyes were fixed on my blue ones. "How long have you been here?" I asked a little too demanding. I was trying to hide the fright in my voice.

"Long enough to know that I shouldn't be doing this. Smoking is bad. Don't do it." Reno said with a hidden secret and he put the lung killer out by rubbing it against the large rock he was sitting on.

"This is the third one I've had. I only have them when…I have a bad feeling." Reno said. The words hit me like flying darts. He pulled off his jacket and sat with his shirt semi open. The wind blew through my hair.

I strolled toward where he sat on the dry ground. The trees creaked and the wind whistled fiercely through them. I looked up and a tree branch shook it's rain drops down on me. "I need to stop…but everything seems to be separating…changing." He said in a mysterious tone.

I closed my eyes in the rain and Leon was staring right at me with a sinister smile. "You okay?" Reno asked as he stood up from sitting. I felt his hand on my shoulder. "You look like you're going to faint." Reno said with a beautiful smile. "Ha if you do, I'll be here to catch you." He told me. His red hair was as red as blood red manicured nails.

"I feel a little dizzy." I admitted. Was this a dream? I was standing with a beauty…Reno…and he smiled at me so brightly. My lips felt so dry like I was putting them in front of a heater. My head spun. I lost my footing. Reno held me up in his arms. "Cloud! You okay?" He asked.

Was I dreaming? How could I be sure? I can do anything I want in dreams. I just have to think it. I stood up on my own feet and his arms dropped from me and to his sides. Reno smiled his pearly whites at me. "How are you Cloud?" He asked. I took him by surprise when I heard him scream. I captured his lips.

I fell on top of him as we tumbled to the dry ground. His eyes closed and his hands smoothed down my back. I moved into another kiss and I felt moisture from his parted lips. I slipped my tongue in and he gladly accepted.

He was so warm; like fire. The kiss became more intense as he leaned into it more. I weakened as he caressed his tongue in my open mouth.

His hand went down and brushed my thigh. He pulled my leg up to his hip and I felt myself tighten. 'Leon.' I thought as I recalled the venomous look in the devil teen's grayish eyes. Reno moved his lips for more deep kisses. My heart thumped against his chest. His partly opened shirt exposed his chest.

My wet lips moved down his neck with sucking kisses. "Mmm." He exclaimed. I felt his hips shift and I pressed against him. He felt hard. My hand unleashed the band holding his hair together and it cascaded apart. It fell down in a glossy red heap on the dirt.

My lips touched his chest and I heard his sweet whisper, "Cloud…..please." I unbuttoned his shirt and pulled it off eagerly. It felt so real. His hand went in my pants. It brushed gently against my ass then found its way to my member. He started stroking me. "Ah!" I exclaimed but he sucked a kiss on my lips to prevent me from moaning.

It felt so good. Nothing like this has ever happened to me before...he made the waiting so worth it. His hand massaged me and I gasped a little. I didn't sound like myself. I wasn't thinking like myself. All I could think about was this and 'Leon...' I wish Leon was with me right now. He stroked me harder and I moaned against his fervent lips.

"Quiet." He said. My eyelids fell and he took me into a trance. I started grinded against his hand without even realizing. His other hand pulled off my t-shirt with ease. His chest blazed against mine. The heat was mind blowing and I felt so….aroused. His hand pulled out of my pants and my eyes opened.

He rolled me over so he was on top. My legs locked against his hips. He put both his hands on the ground to hold himself up. His knees bent on the ground and he swooped into another remarkable kiss. His taste was like the smell of roses. So memorable.

My tongue fought with his and my thigh muscles tightened as I felt myself get harder. The saliva filled my mouth and he probably felt my member starting to throb against his. "Leon…" I said without thinking. He abruptly stopped and got off of me.

I felt like an idiot. This wasn't a dream……I just about had sex with a guy I hardly knew….a gorgeous one…. He stared at me with a serious yet hurt expression. He looked angered but on the inside he felt betrayed. "Cloud…How could you?" He asked with a burning stare.

'I'm fucking stupid.' I thought. I got up off of the ground and felt my cheeks heat up. I was probably blushing. "I'm sorry." I said. It was all I managed to say about that. "Who is Leon?" He demanded like a bitchy mother. His chest was soaked from the rain. I wanted to go back in his arms…I felt cold.

"If I tell you…you'll probably lock me up because I'll sound crazy." I admitted without meeting his eyes. "Look at me Cloud." Reno said. He talked to me like he has known me forever. "You are already crazy." He smirked and he pointed at his wet, pink lips.

I looked away and put my hands in my pockets. "Tell me Cloud." Reno said was a soft tone. I shuffled my feet a little. "I've been having these…dreams lately…." I began. He looked at me and listened. His hair was wet and it looked darker; almost burgundy.

"….Dreams about this guy I don't know….and he looks like he hates me….like he wants to rip me to shreds…..but today…." My voice trailed off as I felt him hug me. I noticed I was crying. The world seemed to be frozen in ice but my body was warm against him. Like he was protecting me.

"Then what." He whispered to me in my ear. His lips lingered there. "Then….today…he saved me….I almost died but he saved me…..it was unreal….he is so…" I cut the sentence off.

I didn't admit all my feelings about how gorgeous Leon is. His smooth marble skin that is as pale as a dove's wings. His soft grey eyes that were intense yet enchanting. His perfect body that seemed to be created from an artist.

He met my eyes. "Cloud…you need sleep." He told me. Great he thinks I'm crazy too. I put my shirt back on then he waved goodbye to me.

"Are you sure you can drive home?" He asked me before he got on his motorcycle. My car was back on the road because he insisted on driving it back on teh street for me.

"I'm sure." I told him. I didn't want to leave. I wanted to be loved again. I wanted to be against him in his strong arms. Kissing and kissing and kissing. My mind wandered away as he sped down the road on his motorcycle. I started up my truck and drove home.

When I opened the front door my house was unusually quiet. It was like those bad warning signs in scary movies. When you want to yell at the movie screen: "Don't open the door! Run away!" But you know that everyone around you is quiet and listening….listening to the eerie sound of nothing.

I walked slowly up the stairs…in fear. I wasn't taking my time; instead I was frightened. I imagined Leon's death glare at me. I walked down the short hallway of the second floor of my familiar house walk. My hand hesitated on the old doorknob of my room. I twisted it to the right and opened it partly.

My ears listened intently but I heard nothing. Not even the rain was pouring. My throat felt like I was choking with fright. I opened the door completely and the dark walls of my room were still.

I flicked the light switch but nothing happened. No safe feeling of light turned on. "Fuck." I said and my voice felt muted. I was utterly alone in the dark, but it felt like something was breathing down my neck. The air was still but sweet like candy.

I walked over to my bed in the dark. The moon was only a sliver and not much light radiated from it. I felt hallow and scared. My heart beat was loud to my eyes. "Hello?" I said in the pitch black bedroom.


	8. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch6

Leon's POV:

I watched them. . . It was strange yet aesthetic…I couldn't understand why they did that. I've never seen. . .males act that way before. . .what was happening? Why? Why would they do that? It was lust. That was all that I knew.

My eyes gazed at them. Their tongues tied. I couldn't look away…why? This was wrong. Completely wrong. I was watching Reno and Cloud. . . 'indulge' in their…desire for each other. I couldn't understand why they would chose each other. . .they are both handsome gentlemen. . .What am I thinking?

Soon enough I heard Cloud say. . .my name. The kiss abruptly stopped. . .Cloud said my name…and it made my grip on the tree branch tighten so much that the leaves turned white like I was choking it. I let go and I saw Reno's head swift a little. He knew I was there. . .

I dashed my way through Winchester's labyrinth woods. Trees blurred past me like a dream. I came to a stop in front of a thick olive tree. I rested my head against it as I felt their emotions inside my head. Lust, longing, need. . .it was too much for me. I grinded my teeth together in my mouth. Why did they do that? Why? And why did I feel. . .this way about Cloud?

I knew I had to leave a false trail. I flicked my metal ring and a blade shot out of the top then I sliced through my long brunette hair. The tips of my new hair style looked like it was burnt by fire.

I grabbed the remains of my cut hair and scattered them as I sprinted. My hair was now a shade of deep brunette in a shag form that framed my sculpted marble jaw.

If I was to ever be with him, I would hurt him like he is a glass vase in a grizzly bear's claws…so fragile yet amazingly delicate. I began to wonder about Cloud…his dreams about me. . .his thoughts about me…his feelings about me…I scare him yet he is fascinated by me. My feet wandered mindlessly in random directions as I intensely pondered the subject.

He is so foolish. That blond doesn't know me, not at all. If he did he would flee…of course it was one of the logical options besides a fiery mob comes after me with pitchforks and sleepless bloodshot eyes. I doubt that Cloud would do that. . .Cloud has these feelings about me that. . .I don't understand…

My senses alerted me and kicked me out of my thoughts. Cloud was going up the stairs of his house. I looked up and saw I was in the tree outside his window. . .I must have been thinking too hard again. My legs stayed in a crouching position as I aimed a spot to quietly jump down on the ground.

A smell rose in the air. . .My mind was over taken by the haunting odor. I flashed quickly in the bedroom to find the smell before he got in his room. It led me to his bedroom door. The smell was down the hall and in his bathroom. . .He must have been bleeding hours ago. . .I could smell it.

The blood was fermenting and it didn't burn in my mind as much as fresh blood would…I heard his feet walking on the wooden boards in the hallway. I jolted back from the door and looked for a place to hide. He twisted the doorknob and it opened.

I was on the ceiling; looking down at the blond. I was like a spider....but I had no need for a web. He was frightened…did he know I was here? He cussed when the light switch didn't work then his heart beat dramatically speed up.

"Hello?" He asked in an uneven voice. I could sense his fingers shaking in fear. I wanted to reply but. . .I knew he would be horror struck. . .

He made his way across the room; hands stretched out in front of him like a zombie so he wouldn't bump into anything. My fingers were slipping. . .I was shaking; I was too. . .afraid of what I could do to him. I could hurt him. . .My grip fell and I soundlessly landed on his bed. He tripped and fell on the bed. I moved at the speed of light off the bed.

It seemed like slow motion how it happened. . .He gasped and his heart accelerated. Cloud sighed once he found it was only his shoe that he tripped on. He stripped off down to his boxers and I felt like a monster under his bed. The mattress moved above me as he shifted under the covers.

I knew it was too dark for him to see. His window permitted no moonlight. It was a new moon. I crawled out from under his bed and knelt on the wooden floor.

It creaked slightly and I winced as Cloud's eyes opened. He was staring right at me…could he see me...? It was too dark... yet...His hand extended out and I stayed frozen with shock.

Cloud gently traced a finger on my cheek then his eyes widened. I could feel him building up for a scream. "Please! Don't!" I pleaded to him. He looked stunned and ghostly. I covered my hand on his mouth. His eyes slowly calmed down but his hand remained on my face.

His touch singed my skin but didn't leave a mark. His emotion went back to fear and I uncovered his mouth. I prepared myself for any punch he was about to throw; I knew I had to act like it hurt or else he would freak out more that I wasn't hurt. His lips moved like he was about to say something.

"Leon?" He asked and he stroked my face. I put my hand on his warm hand. It felt so caring compared to my heartless body. I didn't know what to say. . .Cloud sat up in his bed and I stood up. His hand dropped from my face and I put my back to him.

"My apologies, Cloud. I'm dreadfully sorry you dream about me. I don't understand why this is provoking in your mind either. . .I shouldn't be here. It's to drastic for me to be with you." I said with light but dark voice. He didn't seem bothered that I knew his name...

I knew he was going to get out of bed before he did. "Don't leave Leon." Cloud said. How could I convince him that this is a dream? I didn't want him to wonder in the lethal forest. . .alone. I knew the others will soon find out about him and I. . .Hopefully they got confused by my trail.

"I must." I said but I felt his hand on my shoulder. I turned around and stopped him before he made more contact.

His scent was so virulent and seraphic. . .it was maddening. "Cloud…why?" I asked without thinking. He hesitated and looked down.

"I feel like. . .I need you. . ." Cloud admitted and he took his hand off of me. "That's absurd. You don't know how pernicious I can be to you!" I said. My kind was attractive and hypnotizing for a reason...to draw in our prey easier...Cloud is my angel...not my prey...

Cloud touched my face again but my hand clasped his. He winced with pain. I immediately let go. "Please Cloud. . .don't. . .ever." I warned him. Gravity was pulling us together but it was all so noxious for us. . .I couldn't take it. . . "Pardon me for a moment." I said and I let go of his hand then sprinted out the window in a gush of wind.

I growled in the forest and some deer retreated in fright. I returned back to Cloud in a flash. "Leon. . .I need you." Cloud said. I could sense his emotion was longing and he was desperate. . .he wanted me to stay with him. And I wanted to stay with him too. . .it wasn't that simple though. My arms hugged him and he hugged me. I needed him.

I was losing control as I felt his emotions change to lust. I let go of Cloud quickly and his emotions grew stronger for me. "Cloud! I could kill you right now! Don't you understand I can't do this? This is nonsense. We can't be together." I asked. My voice was harsh like the violent, whipping wind on a freezing beach.

"Leon. I need you." Cloud repeats with his clear aqua eyes. He seemed so confused...on the verge of utter insanity with a strong heart working as if it was pumping for 200 men. His scent was lucious...

My growl was building in my chest. I deucedly grabbed one of his wrists before he touched my face again. "Cloud! I don't want to hurt you!" I said. My feelings longed for his touch. . .I loved the way his warm skin felt on me. . .I have feelings of. . .passion for him.

"I don't know why but. . .I can't leave you. . .Leon. I want you. Please be with me." Cloud begged. I could see how much he cared about me. . .he showed feelings of. . .love. I didn't want to ask him if he did truly love me. . .because I feel like I would. . .fall in love with him. . .like I have fallen in love with him...

"Cloud. . .I can't. I simply can't." I softly said and I busted out his window in incredible speed. His emotion was despair when I left him. I would come back to him. . .I would. . .

I heard something. . .like footsteps rushing for me. . .could it be the others? "No. . ." I muttered and I turned my head back. He was running after me. . .should I run?

Before I could decide he was hugging me tightly. "Please Leon! Stay! Can't you see that my dreams mean something? I need you." Cloud cried out to me. The blond was muttering: _'He's real...I'm not crazy.'_ Over and over again...

I felt awful that he was thinking he is insane...it's all my fault. I can't be with him. I'm too dangerous.

He was trembling and I hugged my cold arms around him.

The blond's cries echoed through my mind as my fingers traced up and down his spine. "What are you Leon?" Cloud asked. My mind fell apart by it's bonded seams at the question. "I can't. . .tell you. Unfortunately it's not all that simple." I said. His arms tightened around me. "I'm no angel. . ." I said lowly yet poetically.

"Yes you are." Cloud said with a calmed voice now. He met my face and stared into me. "If only you knew. . ." I muttered quietly like a dark lullaby. The blond moved forward to my lips. I couldn't pull away so I turned my head and gasped before our lips met.

"Leon. . .what's wrong?" Cloud asked with a fretful tone. He could feel my hands trembling violently. "I can't Cloud. My control is not significant enough to overpower my. . .need." I explained. He didn't understand; I could tell. "You're tired." I said softly.

"No. . .I'm not." Cloud muttered and his head slumped on my chest. His eyelids shut but he forced them open. I cradled the male in my arms with ease. He felt light and sleepy. . .and warm. "Hold on tight." I whispered to the sleeping angel. I sprinted back to his bedroom and swooped through the open window.

I set him gently on his bed and his eyes opened. "I can't sleep." He said as he reached his hand up to my cascading brunette shag. My fingers laced with his and my eyes closed to gain control. "You are such a child." I said with a dark smirk.

His emotions raged into anger. "I am not!" Cloud blurted out. I grinned at him and sat on the bed. I brushed his blond messy hair with my free hand. We were silent for a long time. His eyes refused to close. "Tell me." He demanded quietly.

"Huh?" I said. I knew exactly what he meant but I decided to play dumb. "Tell me what you are…you are clearly not human." Cloud said with his hand tracing my jaw line.

His eyes marveled over my features. "If I tell you. You would try to do something like. . .try to make me run away with an utterly threatening, smelly vegetable necklace around your neck." I said. I managed a light laugh out of my nervousness.

"What? I'm lost." Cloud said. I sighed and let go of his hand. I turned my face to stare at the faded paint on the walls. "You've heard about my kind before. I'm positively sure you have. I am not a mortal. . .but I was once. . ." I said. It was so hard to continue.

"Zombie?" Cloud asked in a sleepy voice. I grinned and shook my head. "I can say, I've never met an attractive zombie, but then again. . .I don't think a dead corpse is all that pleasant." I said blankly but with humor in my tone. The stories began to rarify in my head. . .I didn't know how to word it without Cloud trying to kill me.

"You need some sleep." I said. He seemed too comfortable with me. I bet he thought this was a dream. He grumbled something that sounded like: "I wake now." I turned my face back to him and his eyes were staring at me. I politely smiled at him.

"Tell me." Cloud said. I sighed and drummed my fingers on my black pants. "In 1669 our kind was being assigned to protect humans at night. We would watch them from outside their window and scare off any harmful spirits or creatures that wanted to hurt the human. We were protectors. It all fell apart for our kind in autumn of 1669. William Lamport watched over a woman named Jane Conway. . .her features were as fair as ours and she was 19-years-old. William fell in love with her and he disobeyed the rules. He came inside her bedroom and held her. She woke and gasped at him. He couldn't control himself because when we love someone. . .our emotions turn wild and we long for. . .well. . .we get thirsty. . ." I said and I clenched my teeth.

The blond started at me. I could tell he was very tired; it was past midnight. "Are you alright?" I asked and I touched his face. He scooted away from me and got out of the bed. "You. . .you're a. . .vampire." Cloud managed to choke out.

I stayed completely still and took a breath in then nodded. I am a vampire. "She screamed a shrill shriek for her husband and William had no idea what to do. We can't think straight when we have thirst. Her husband, Thomas Conway, came inside her bedroom with his rifle. William bit her and our clan was alerted immediately. . .Mr. Conway began pointing us out in the daylight and calling us the devil. . .people believed him and our name was the. . .vampires." I said in a hushed voice. It felt odd on my tongue to say the word.

Cloud's chest moved up and down with his frantic breathing; he kept eyeing me in his stiff stance like he was expecting me to pounce on him. I turned my gaze away to continue. "Since then. People in the 17th century have been passing down stories that say we are dark demons from hell and we live off of mortal's blood. Jane's bite marks on her neck were seen by thousands of townsfolk and more stories began about my kind. The townsfolk came after us during the day so we could no longer walk along the streets when the sun was out or else they would try to kill us. . .we use to walk with the townsfolk during the day and we all stood out but people just thought we were beautiful and nothing suspicious. . .so we began to only come out at night because most of the townsfolk were asleep then." I said and I shifted my stare to his direction.

He relaxed slightly and he eyed his baseball bat from under the bed. I held in my chuckle and kept my poker face on. Like a baseball bat can kill a vampire. . .but I don't blame him. . .he must be terrified. I mean really, all the lies the media has represented vampires as because of stories. . .rumors that have been pasted down for generations.

"The rumors spilled across the world and they changed over the centuries. Soon people believe in wearing garlic to ward away our kind. That doesn't work; we don't like the smell of human food but it doesn't bother us that much. And they made up ways to kill a vampire. We don't turn into bats, we don't wear capes, and we don't burn in the sun, and most importantly, we don't feed off of humans. If we can't control ourselves in the emotion of love and we get to nervous. . .then we would bite. . .love drains away our energy. . .well our energy is what we have to make our heart beat. . .we are not completely dead." I explained.

The blond's blue eyes looked alert and stared at me like a bulls-eye target. "We drink blood from the creatures in the forest, normally we choose deer, but the blood of a mortal has the strongest scent to us. . .especially if the vampire is in love. . .we have great control over ourselves; so if a vampire were in a room of hundreds of mortals, it would have no effect on us. We are very controlled." I spoke lowly.

Cloud's breathing calmed slightly but it was still above normal. Could he see that. . .I'm falling in love with him? "So thus when we drink the blood, it powers our heart. Without blood we become weak and our lust for it becomes dangerously high so we could make mistakes in biting mortals if they are close by. . . Usually one deer will last us three months. It all depends how active we are though." I said to him smoothly.

"Are you. . .thirsty now?" Cloud asked with his heartbeat becoming irregular. "Not at all. I've trained myself well. . .it's just when you. . .touch me, it makes my heart beat too fast and my energy drains from me. . .I don't want you to get hurt. . ." I said. He remained with his back against the wall. His heartbeat was unsure about me.

"I can control myself. You don't have to be that far away. But you are welcome to choosing your own way. Just don't touch my face. . .it makes me feel. . .warm and. . .I think I'm beginning to. . ." I stopped there because my eyes flickered to his feet moving toward me.

He was still in his boxers and my mind tried not to think about him and Reno again. . .what if that could've been us? What am I thinking? Cloud sat on the bed and gazed into my eyes. "I don't care if you drink blood to be a strong immortal. . .I love you." Cloud said.

I felt like my heart was warming up my body. He moved his hand up and lightly brushed my lips with his fingertips. My eyes tensed up and he retracted his hand quickly. "My apologies. . .I didn't mean to frighten you." I muttered. Cloud smiled with his eyes closed and his head was down.

My hand cupped under his chin and I lifted his face up. "I love you too. Most veraciously." I said and my face was extremely close to his. It was so insidious. . .seductive yet very pernicious. I backed away because he emotion was full of lecherousness.

"I should tell you this now." I muttered to him. He sat up and asked "What is it? There is more to tell?" I nodded and laced my fingers with his. "Yes there is. . .Our senses are perfectly alert to everything. They are all very immaculate. We can hear, smell, see, feel and. . .taste everything better then anyone or anything. Plus we have a sixth sense. . ." I muttered.

His gaze was fixated on my face. "Don't tell me that you can see dead people." Cloud said with a small laugh. I didn't understand his joke. "It's a movie. . ." He muttered awkwardly when he saw my confused expression. I shook my head and grinned. "Well, back to the senses, we can sense emotions of any creature. Living or not living." I said.

Cloud took a moment then his eyes darted at my eyes and he blushed. "Oh no." He muttered to himself then verbally hurt himself inside his head. "Right now you have regret for feeling your emotions of desire before." I said with a wry smile. He blushed harder.

I hugged him tightly and inhaled his scent. "Don't touch me. Just let me do it." I warned him through my teeth as I sensed his fantasies about me. "Wait. . .you aren't telling me something. . .how did you know I was dreaming about you before?" Cloud asked suspiciously.

"We have a gift. . .we can see people's dreams, daydreams, thoughts, fantasies, desires, hopes, and imaginations. Our job as a guardian is to make you safe. . .so we try to erase your nightmares that happen. Usually people get nightmares when a spirit or a mephistophelean. . .ahem evil creature is near." I spoke to him. I could tell my vocabulary was confusing him.

"So. . .you saw my dreams about you? And did you. . .oh wow, you saw my dirty thoughts!" Cloud exclaimed and he hide his face in my chest. His face was very warm; he was definitely blushing again. I rubbed my hand up and down his bare back.

"It's okay. You'd be surprise how many more dirty thoughts there are out here in Winchester. Your thoughts are fairly exculpated. . .innocent compares to all the other profane thoughts from this town's collection of perverts. You shouldn't fret. . .but I still think you need to know that I can see in your head." I said lightly.

Cloud looked paranoid and his emotion showed it too when he looked back into my eyes. "How many of you are there?" Cloud asked me. I was silent for a moment.

"Well the last few days, the vampires in the radius of this location have been alerted that I've been socializing with a mortal-" I stopped when he stiffened in my arms. "Oh you don't like that word. Well they know I'm socializing with a human, you, and they don't want history to repeat itself. . .If they found you they would have to. . .kill you before people found out that vampires are here. . ." I muttered the last part.

The blond tensed up a bit but he relaxed. I grimaced at the thought of the clan coming. I knew that one person was here already. The clan fled centuries ago because of the townsfolk. I stayed because I didn't like the new rules of not being out in daylight and not socializing with humans. . .it's not dangerous. . .I can control myself.

I looked down at Cloud and he was sleeping in my arms. I got up and set him down carefully. I swished the blanket over him and tucked him in. He opened his eyes slightly and I blew him a kiss. "Goodnight, love." I said sweetly. His eyes fluttered shut and I pounced out the window.

My dive out the window was slow for me. I felt odd. . .I landed in a crouch and I shot my head up. I sniffed a little. One of them was on my trail. . .and I knew which one it was. . .

He was coming for me. . .he knew I was here. I looked up to Cloud's open window and then gazed back into the woods. I sprinted off into the woods before it was too late. . .I knew he would have to kill him. . .I couldn't let him die. . .You're not crazy, love...I'm here for you.

Cloud....I'm his guardian, his protector, his dark angel. . .his love. I am your vampire....


	9. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch7

Cloud's POV:

Leon was there his arms around me. His lips parted. I brushed my fingers across his jaw and I leaned in for a kiss. He pushed me to the ground and hissed with a dark red glare in his eyes. Leon's fangs grew and his face was twisted with anger with burning red eyes. He constricted my hand in his grasp…and bit my hand.

"Ahhh!" I screamed and my eyes opened. I was staring at the ceiling and I shifted in my bed. "Leon?!" I called out and I looked around the room. _'He isn't here….it was just a dream….how much of it was a dream?'_ I thought and I wiped my eyes.

There were tears in my eyes. I blinked a couple times and looked at the clock. 9:17 am. I closed my mouth and tasted something weird. Morning breath probably. I pushed the sheets off of me.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed. There was blood…everywhere. I looked at my hand and it was the source of all the blood. I let out a sigh when I realized I bit myself. I shook the dizziness from my head and stumbled to the bathroom.

My head was swirling; I felt faint from the blood loss. I fiddled with the old brass doorknob and I felt like I was going to drop down on the floor. I rinsed my hand in the sink and stuck my mouth under the facet.

The water had a heavy metal taste and smelt like sulfur but I didn't care. Blood….so much….blood. I thought. I looked at myself in the mirror to try and focus on something else. _'I'm fine…it was just a dream…..but….is he real?'_ I thought.

I turned the squeaky knob and the water shut off. I avoided staring into the sink and grabbed a towel off the floor. My hands were shaking as I dried them and I stared at the bloody towel.

_ 'Is he here? Could he have smelled the blood? I should get rid of this.'_ I thought and I dashed back to my bedroom. The wooden floor boards stung my bare feet with splinters.

I put on the nearest pair of jeans and a simple blue t-shirt. My body had a strange sensation like I was walking through spider webs. Like invisible strings that I could feel but not see. Like invisible words sticking to me and driving me insane as I tried to pick them off but the feeling stuck on me like glue. _'I have feelings for a vampire. . .a vampire who I do not know is real. . .Leon.'_ I thought to myself.

The bloody towel was full of dark red smears and the bite on my hand stung like hot needles piercing my skin. I yanked off my bloody bed sheets and folded them in a bundle. I rushed down the stairs with the cotton sheets in my arms.

I felt like a criminal but I don't know why. . .maybe because I was closing the front door and speeding to my bike with an unusual dance of running. I tossed the blood-stained sheets and towel in the front weaved basket of my bike and sped off down the dirt road.

My heart beat was pounding at a ridiculous velocity for no reason. I just felt like Leon was a fragment of my imagination. That I am crazy. That I'll never be in his arms and kissing his sweet pale lips. I thought so deeply that I didn't realize I was already pedaling through Dead Raven Path.

I skidded my bike to a stop and flung the sheets out into the hidden lake. I watched them sink and hoped that the horrid sight of blood will never haunt me again. I don't know how long I stood there but it felt like two seconds because I was already back home cuddling against my tattered navy blue velvet couch.

My legs hung over the edge and my face was buried in the dusty fabric of a matching pillow. _'I want Leon to be real. I don't want to be crazy. I want someone in my life. I want him. I need my dark angel. . .my protector.'_ I thought to myself and the thoughts just made me feel worse like a monster inside me eating away my hope.

The phone rang and my eyes fluttered open. I was still in the same position on the couch and the phone rang again. My thoughts were hazy as I woke back into consciousness. I stumbled to the phone and answered it.

"Hello?" I said. Who could be calling? I already didn't have a job and my life was going down the drain. "Hello this is Juliette Woodhaven calling from Winchester's Auto Shoppe. Is Cloud available?" A secretary woman about my age sang to me with a unique whimsical voice like wind chimes.

"This is him." I said to her with a bewildered tone. She sighed and typed something in the background. Her honey-like voice returned to me. "I heard you are interested in a job and there is help wanted here. Would you like to fill the job?" She asked lightly.

"Sure…" I said; hoping it wasn't fixing cars but that was highly likely. "Great! Please come at 2pm for your interview, Cloud! See you then!" Juliette sang then the dial tone rang in my ear after she hung up. _'And….Reno works there…how….lovely….'_ I thought to myself.

I checked the clock and it was one o'clock. I shrugged and went outside to my bike. _'I guess if Reno doesn't hate me that I could…be with him instead of…Leon.'_ I thought and it stung my mind to think that Leon might not exist. I rode my bike toward town at a slow speed. Ravens stared flying above me with shrieking caws like they were warning me.

_ 'Isn't it embarrassing that I'm squeamish and will faint at the sight of blood yet I like a vampire? I'm truly pathetic…'_ I thought to myself. It took me a couple times to blink and collect myself. I was in town.

The wind was wiping at my face like thick sheets of ice water. I felt numb, like I didn't belong, like I was invisible. _'He needs to be real…He needs to be…I need my protector…my dark angel…'_ I thought and I rested my bike softly against a wooden barrel of dark violette irises.

I opened the door and the bell jingled above me. A person at the desk behind the counter looked up. It reminded me of a hospital with the large counter and you could only she the person's forehead and eyes. I studied the beauty.

She had fragile paper white skin and deep gray cat eyes. Her gingery coloured lips were fixed in a small smile like…she belongs. "Juliette?" I asked and I felt like I was on a blind date. Her eyes flickered up at me like a blast of fireworks.

"Cloud?" She asked in her voice she used over the phone. I smiled and she typed in something briskly in her computer like clock work. Her fingers sailed over the keys in strange number combinations and her eyes moved as she typed the string of characters.

"One moment please." She says and she properly stood up. Juliette walked out and passed in front of me. Her model like hair reminded me of those Tim Burton movies. She dark and messy but it was perfect in everyway. I found myself gazing over her and I blushed. My focus turned away as she went up the stairs to a loft like room.

There I stood in utter awkwardness. My fingers brushed the candy in the little dish that looked like some knick-knack junk thing that someone either got for a Christmas present 10 years ago or a bargain at a thrift store. I hesitated and didn't take any of the noisy cellophane wrapped candy.

After awhile of standing with my hands in my pockets, I heard muted clunks coming down the carpeted stairs. Juliette's kind smile emerged as she saw me. "Just fill out this form." She said and suddenly my hands held a pink form. I put it on the counter and clicked their custom pen. It was attached to the counter by a metal beaded string.

The troublesome string scratched and curled on the counter as I wrote in the information. Juliette's eyebrows narrowed together and she typed something with furious speed. I wanted to ask her what she was doing but I didn't want to seem nosey…especially when it's my first day at work. I handed her the form and her face transformed to a delighted, mellow expression.

Juliette inserted the paper in her organized filing cabinet and slide the door shut. Another pair of footsteps came down the stairs. "Jewels!" A familiar voice called out. Axel came down the stairs with a water bottle in his hand. "Axel. You are off of break." She said with a new stern voice. Maybe I should become accostumed to it while Axel was here. Oh the days of high school with that man whore…

"Aw c'mon baby. Can't we just fool around for a little bit while Reno is busy working." Axel cooed and he nuzzled his lips to her cheek. Juliette shrugged him away but the tiger couldn't resist planting a sweet peck on her white cheek. I stood there in silence and I felt invisible again.

Axel's eyes zapped and locked on my face. "Who's the pansy?" Axel asked and my face flustered with anger. Juliette caught my burning rage and she said, "Axel. We'll talk later." "You better not be cheating on me." Axel said and it looked like he was going to call her a 'hooker' but he didn't. Juliette's eyes seemed glassy with tears as Axel slammed the door into the next room.

The room seemed to shake with emotion. Juliette put her head down for a few moments and my urge to comfort her was irresistible. I held my stance. She looked up and her face was back to normal. "I'm glad you decided to join, Cloud. You will be a great addition here." She said like she rehearsed the lines over and over again.

"So…I must say I'm…Well I have no experience with working with cars." I confessed. Juliette smiled like she was laughing to herself. The paintings of faded water coloured cats were staring at me. This room felt so misplaced compared to the garage in the next room. "You will be taking my job. I'm leaving this job soon." Juliette sang in her honey sweet accent.

"Where are you going to?" I asked and after I felt a little rude for asking such a question. Her eyes changed to fierce anger. "That is my own personal life, Mr. Strife. And it is my choice to share it with you and I do not feel obligated to tell you anything." She shot at me like a team of target practicing army men.

It fell quiet again as she stomped upstairs. "Please read the guidelines." She murmured with bitter whips in her voice. I was alone in the room. My feet strolled over to behind the counter. I was suddenly freezing. I must have been too full of adrenaline to notice before.

Time flew as I followed the guidelines and worked out the special codes for stocking and ordering products. I answered phone calls from people and made phone calls with the recited lines of: "Hello this is Winchester's Auto Shop! I'm calling to notify you that your car is ready to be picked up!"

The door swished open and Reno walked through. I felt ridiculous trying to act invisible. "Cloud." He said and I looked up then put my 'oh-I-didn't-notice-you' expression on my face. The red head looked odd like he was tired yet alert. He looked sleepless. Juliette rushed down the stairs in her black dress and said, "Thank you Cloud. You can come back to work tomorrow at 9am. You are done here for today." She practically danced out of the door as she had papers and large packing envelopes in her hands.

I took this as a good chance to escape from Reno. He probably hates me now…ever since we…well… Reno eyed me sharply as I piled the papers up into compartments. "Sorry I should get home now. See ya Reno." I said as casually as possibly. He was dead silent and I zoomed out of the freezing cold room.

My mind raced with thoughts as I rode my bike home. It was nightfall as the sunset turned from fiery raspberry to mysterious violette. The porch creaked and moaned as I stepped on it. My body was shaking cold. I was up the stairs in a haze and then I was lying in my bed facing the ceiling in a quick amount of time.

Suddenly I felt very warm in my bed like it was never cold. I stripped down to my boxers and snuggled in my bed. I felt anxious but soon I drifted off into another beautiful nightmare.

The brunette was next to me in a fancy courtyard with his profile facing me. His eyes fixed at the edge of the yard. _'It's dangerous. I know they are after you.'_ He said and then he hugged me tightly. _'Cloud…I can't let this happen.'_ He spoke to me. The world started spinning around me like a crazy carousel. He leapt onto someone and ripped their throat. I felt a pair of hands around my neck and I was choking…choking…

I woke up with tears in my eyes and I felt a scream was about to build in my throat. It was a little past midnight and the sheer, flowing curtains where breathing in the smell of old oak and dampened leaves in my room. It must have been raining because the window seal clicked with raindrops every now and then.

The feeling of being alone came to me again. _'I'm crazy…'_ I thought to myself and tears fell from my eyes. I got up and slipped. The previous rain must have blew through the open window. My head was thumping with pain as I struggled to stand up again. I balanced myself like I was on thin ice.

I managed to get to the window without breaking any bones. The leaves rustled in the tree like a ghostly lullaby and a distance owl cooed from miles away. I stuck my head out the window and saw it was just drizzling a little now. I closed the window and came back to my bed. I checked and I wasn't bleeding and no vital organs were falling out. It was the absolute, strange, random luck of being an accident magnet.

I sat on the edge of my bed and listened to the night. My eyes fell shut and I remembered being awoke by a thunk a few minutes later. I sprang to my feet and grabbed my baseball bat. "Show yourself!!!" I screamed in anger to scare away the intruder. My mouth gapped open. In the moonlight that seeped through the open window was a creature. A dark angel. Leon.

He was staring at me with a thankful expression. "Cloud. I'm so glad you are not hurt." He said with relief. I dropped my baseball bat and ran into his arms. It was embarrassing but I cried in his arms anyway. I'm not crazy…I have an angel…

"Cloud I have to get you get you somewhere safe." He said and his eyes stared out the window. It was silent for a moment. "They are heading north." He said and he turned back to me. "Cloud…something is wrong…I…I can't hear you anymore…" Leon said.

Leon walked away from me and sat like a prince in my old cream coloured chair. "I can't feel you emotions or see your dreams…I've…failed you…Once a vam…once a protector fails to protect their person from nightmares then they lose their powers…Now I can't read anything about you…and I'm worried…You're in great danger, Cloud Strife." He said and I was a little shocked he knew my last name…but then again…he is a vampire.

The beautiful demon stood up and looked out the window. "You'll be safe here tonight…They are going on a different path…my plan worked…" He said and he looked back at me. "Leon…" I could only say his elegant name. My heart lifted when fret disappeared from his face and he smiled at me.

I hugged him tightly and he stiffened. "Cloud…please…I…am…weak…" He said and his teeth were clenched. I smiled with a mini blush. Hugging a blood lusting vampire is not quite smart. He led me to my bed and I got in it. "Please sleep…I'll stay." Leon spoke and I watched him above me. He sat on the bed and his face looked down at me.

His face lit up with an eerie glow from the moonlight. His ice skin from his hand touched my hair. "Please…stay…" I said and my eyes lost the battle of fighting away sleep. "I will…" He whispered serenely. My protector was back but my nightmares returned.


	10. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch8

Leon's POV:

Cloud was more then a dream. . .it seemed I could watch him from above and never cease to be distracted. His delicate face always had a readable expression…but that night when he had that dream…it shocked me…How could he have dreamed that? I would never bite him…I'm his protector and I'll keep him safe.

It was a quick haze when he woke up. I had to run away before I could save him from his nightmare…I would have saved him but if I did…then I would have smelled his blood…He called my name in his dreams with fear and sorrow. I wasn't there to stop the nightmares. I lost my powers.

The day seemed blank without his emotions to keep me warm, and without his imaginative day dreams to keep me calm. Suspense itched inside my veins. I wasn't his protector anymore…I lost my powers. Now I was just like the rest of them…a vampire.

"Leon…" Cloud croaked and he sat up slowly from his bed. His sleepy eyes squinted from the piercing morning light from the window. "Good morning, sunshine. Sleep well?" I asked as I grinned and took another sip of tea. He watched me carefully from across the room. I sat in a chair with my legs crossed like a prince. I had a cup of tea in my hands and he questioned when I drank it.

"The smell of the tea is keeping me…distracted." I said and that was the only way I could put it. I could have said: _'The smell of the tea is keeping me from ripping your sweet throat out and drinking you up.'_ But that would be a little too morbid for my squeamish darling.

"Have you been here all night?" Cloud asked and my eyes looked away. "I am still your protector…I'm always with you even when I am…fighting them off." I said and images of the snarling vampires after Cloud burned my mind. "They are after you to…end you Cloud. They know I'm with you and they will stop at nothing to…end you…" I said and my gaze met his panicked face.

I put down my cup of tea and was sitting next to him in a flash. My arms cautiously wrapped around him and I held him close. "Leon…what ever happens…promise me you will protect me." Cloud said and I smelled the salt water tears from him. "My arms will always be here to comfort you, my treasure…" I said and it hurt me to feel him crying. If I dare touched his face…I could have lost control.

A few minutes past and my urge to inhale his scent grew tough to resist. "Cloud…are you okay?" I said and suddenly my body tensed up. I jolted up and launched myself to the window. "Cloud…don't breath for a moment." I said so blindly fast but he followed my orders.

They were getting close…but they followed my plan. I had dove in the hidden lake and retrieved Cloud's blood stained sheets. They were heading east now towards where I had planted the sheets. "You can breathe now." I said and he sucked in a silent breath. My eyes scanned the room as pain sang through my veins. "We don't have long today…Do what you can to hide your scent." I said and my veins singed with lust for blood.

"Leon…will you please stay with me today?" Cloud asked and his eyes were locked on me the whole time with utter amazement. At times it seemed like he was the real magical one instead of me…I was the demon and he was the angel... "Certainly." I assured him and I managed a smile. It felt so good to smile…it's been so long since I've ever had this feeling…

His eyes blinked a couple of times to wake up. . .maybe I should have told him it was 6am. . .I took a breath and his scent was like spinning malignant soirées. My throat drank up the scent of jasmine and wild iris petals. He was down to his boxers and blood wasn't the only lust I had. After hundreds of years without intercourse. . .I've never been in love but I have made love blinding mistakes. . .that is how I became a foreboding blood sucker. . .

Cloud is dressed and standing in front of me before I realize it. "Are you ready to save your soul?" I asked with a little sparkle of my grinning teeth. Cloud nodded and he seemed oddly shy in front of me. I stood up and his eyes looked away. We were so close and the temptation was mind-splitting. My fingers drummed against my thigh. _'If only I could control myself…I can't hurt you…'_ I thought and his menacingly pure eyes looked back at me.

I could only imagine how soft his lips feel and how good he would taste. . . a wet taste of his risky rose petal lips would send me soaring for his throat. "Leon?" He asked and my eyes flicked like a lighter at him. "Get anything you have. Vinegar, bleach, alcohol. Anything." I spoke and he paused before he fled down stairs.

In your room; there is a spider and there is a fly. The spider looks quite perilous; it's shiny black hard shell and it's stripe of red makes the small creature like a serial killer. The fly is fat and black. Buzzing and buzzing around your head. You shoo it away but it only comes back for more of your hand play. You pick up a newspaper and roll it up like a bat.

What do you kill? The spider or the fly? If you try to kill the fly it could take you many times before you finally smack it to its grave. Then the spider might have trickled away into a nifty little hiding nook. If you try to kill the spider in its silver stringed web; it could release itself down to the safety of the ground and at you bare feet. Or it could be smacked and when you check to see if it's dead; it is no where to be found.

You could wait for the spider to kill the infuriating fly and watch the crouching demon drink up the sweet mummy-casted fly. The spider eyes the fly with all its eyes. The fly curiously tests the spider's volition as he dives in and out of the web. Should you just wait for it or should you do something?

But what good will waiting do if you don't know how nature will take its course? You decide to open the window and the fly escapes. Then you let the spider crawl on the newspaper and you place it outside. Let them be free and let the decisions be made by them.

I walked down the stairs and I could guess everything what Cloud was doing by just listening to the noise. A metal pot lid makes a sound like a drum symbol as it hits the ground. He is in the kitchen. A clank of plastic bottles which are half empty. Cleaning products. The short sputter of water and a tough faucet. He is at the sink. I poked my head around the counter and there he was. Disheveled and hassled.

He opens the lid to the factory large vinegar jug and dampens a dusty cloth. I curiously dap some amount in my hand and licked it. "Ewwwww Leon!" He exclaimed and I growled. My eyes grew sharp and a tingle of alarm crawled up his spine. "Sorry…The vinegar will work. It has similar metallic taste since it's been under your sink so long." I explained and he relaxed a little.

"They are getting closer…" I warned him but instead of hoping to make him okay; he panicked and launched the jug of vinegar all over the kitchen. The bitter smell wrapped its hidden claws around the room and I stood there with a plain expression. "That wasn't necessary but aw well." I said and he blushed. I smiled at him and then stopped myself from touching his hand.

His pulse was too strong and I would have been able to sense it in his hand. Cloud looked at me with bewildered eyes. I realized he saw me trembling and my hand clenched on the counter in a tight ball. I could hear them closing in. "They know where we are…Cloud what ever I tell you, you do okay?" I asked him and he nodded. "Hold on tight…" I said and before he could blink I was carrying him out the door into my dangerous speed of a vampire's run.

I crashed through the window of the auto shoppe and a costumer was standing there with his mouth gaping open. "I hope you don't mind." I said with my gentleman voice. I jacked the fastest car I could find and placed Cloud in the passenger seat. The tires squealed as I sped out of the shoppe and Cloud looked beyond mortified. His blood was pumping wildly and I raced down with rising illegal speed. The road extended out in front and the fog was thick but I could see.

"Leon…Leon!!!" Cloud demanded for me to speak to him. "Cloud…calm down. I have you safe. They won't kill you." I told him but Cloud was on edge. "WHAT?! Someone wants to kill me?" He asks and I feel my senses sting. "Well…that is one of the options…" I told him "What?" He asked with a singe of questioning. "Or they will…make you one of our _kind_…. and kill me…" I told him and his eyes were crazy with overwhelmed thoughts. Didn't I already tell him that they want to end him?

"Leon…am I safe?" Cloud asked and I nodded firmly. I pushed the pedal further and I was testing my calculations. "Cloud. Strip." I demanded and he shot me a: _what-the-hell-Leon?!_ type of look. "What?" He asked and I locked my eyes on him. "Now." I said and he took off his clothes. By the time he looked back I was down to my boxers. "Can I keep my boxers on?" He asked and I said nothing. That question was a little too awkward for my taste.

Cloud's body stiffened as I launched the car off the bridge. His eyes closed and we fell. I grabbed his hand and held it tightly. The water came closer and everything was slow motion. "LEON!" He shrieked a half a second after my extreme vampire senses. I felt the vampires closing in on us. We were falling together. The car hit the water with a cascading splash.


	11. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch9

Cloud's POV:

I couldn't tell which way was up. I felt like I was falling fast and the water felt like rushing wind. Leon? Leon? Where am I? Where are you? It was silent and I was too scared to open my eyes.

. . .I didn't want to see my life ending. I didn't want to imagine what the vampires could be doing to Leon now. I felt like I was floating suddenly. As if the falling suddenly made me rise and stay. Did I hit the bottom? I forced my eyes open.

To my amazement, Leon had me in his arms and he was hovering in the air. His eyes were cautious and alert. We were flying. I smiled and I realized my body was numb from the cold air. How high up were we….? "Cloud. Don't look down." Leon commanded. It's not like his words did anything. It was just as bad as reverse psychology.

My eyes peered downward. " AHHHHH!" I screamed and Leon held me tighter. We must have been almost as high as an airplane. I saw clouds and I didn't belong up here with them. Damn my hippie parents for giving me this name! I'm afraid of heights!

Gah why can't I have a normal name?! My face nuzzled in his chest and I felt like a demented baby doll in his Gothic arms. "I think I'm going to…" I paused as my mind went into fainting mode. Damn my squeamish ways!

"Cloud. Just open your eyes." Leon said with a tone that reminded me of a mother with an immense headache. I was silent and my eyes were closed tight like a stubborn child. Shit. . .he is gorgeous in his boxers and he is going to go crazy with my heartbeat racing like a demon horse. "Leon…I'm scared." I mumbled. I felt his chest move as he laughed and said, "I'm not going to drop you…but I could like this-"

He let go of me and I fell like a bowling ball through the clouds that dampened my pale skin. "LEOOOON!" I yelled and I opened my eyes. He swooped down and grabbed me with ease. "But I don't think I will do that." Leon smirked and I smacked his chest.

My hand hurt from his hard vampire chest but it was still worth hitting him. "That wasn't funny." I hissed at him and Leon's eyes are optimistic like he is human again; but his dark violette rings under his eyes defined his vampire face.

"Cloud…You know I will never let you fall." Leon assured me and his breath was close to my ear. I was silent because I could tell he was controlling himself. He doesn't know how much I want to be a. . .vampire.

I want to live with him forever and be as strong as him. I want to be a vampire so he won't have to worry if he hurts me. . .but I know that if he bites me that the other vampires will come after him. Just like what happened with William Lamport. . .I don't want Leon to get hurt. . .

Leon looked down at me and his smile made my heart go crazy. "I need to make up for that nightmare I let you have. . .I'll give you a good 'dream' now so you will forget about that nightmare." He said and I was a little confused. "Ever dream about flying?" He asked me and I merely nodded.

"Here…I'll show you." He said as he carefully held my hand and let go of the rest of me. I was holding his strong hand and it was like those lullaby-like fairytales I saw as a child. When I couldn't sleep at night, my mother would read me stories and show me the pictures. It was like I was holding hands with a Gothic Peter Pan. I smiled at Leon and I laughed lightly at the feeling of being weightless.

He looked back at me with careful eyes. . .You're not human. . . but you're not a monster. . .You're my dark angel. Leon smiled back at me and I felt my heart flutter. His gleaming pearly smile and the happiness in his face.

It was a perfect picture. Some would look at his smile right now and say _Aww_ to try to conceal their inner thoughts of _Oh my god! Sexy!_ Other people would just say their inner thoughts immediately. Me. . .well even though Leon can't read my thoughts now, he can probably tell that I'm mentally drooling over him.

"Do you dare to look down?" Leon asked and he caught my robin egg eyes. I felt embarrassed. I am afraid of blood and heights. I'll never be able to stay with Leon. "Um…" I stuttered and he grinned at me.

"Don't worry. . .I got you." Leon said to me and his fingers tied with mine carefully. His eyes flashed like he was fighting the lustful heartbeat radiating from my close wrist. "Leon…I don't want you to feel uncomfortable…" I told him and his face composed itself to a natural state.

"I'm fine, Cloud. I know how to control myself…" He said and he smiled at me warmly. I knew what he was thinking. I could see the encouraging look in his eyes. "Go on. Take a look." Leon spoke so softly. I dared my eyes to avert away from his face as he drifted forward in the foggy sky. It seemed like stray cotton shreds now as the fog became translucent with the grey sky.

I've never been this high up before. I probably would have if I saved money for a plane trip to somewhere sunny but this was better then any vacation. My eyes looked down and I saw the beauty of Winchester.

The mountains of the valley toward with sloped peaks and the forest's pines looked so miniature and quaint. I began to notice the entanglement of familiar scents. Dog wood, wet leaves, crisp air, moist dew . . . and Leon's sweet rainy floral scent.

It felt so strange inside me. It's like I was the one who couldn't control myself . . . my thoughts. I couldn't help but imagine if he didn't need to be so careful. If he was a mortal like me or if I was a . . .vampire like him. Two vampires or two mortals.

That's the only way we could be together without worrying. How long could we keep this up? If he could just bite me then. . .we would have nothing to worry about anymore. If only he would bite me. . .then we could do everything. . .

"Cloud?" Leon asked and I snapped out of my deep thoughts. I was probably blushing because he was grinning again. "Just because I can read your thoughts or sense your emotions or see your dreams, doesn't mean that you can ignore me and have clandestine conversations with yourself in your head now, love. I don't like being disregarded." Leon spoke to me.

"Sorry…" My voice drifted off as I found myself with Leon almost ten feet above the ground. He landed with me softly and he took his hand away from mine almost immediately. The veins in my hand felt as if they just defrosted. Warmth was back to me again. Except the warmth kept growing hotter.

Now that we were down on land together I got a full view of Leon's body. I was glad my mouth was as tight as a money safe or I probably would have had logorrhea. Probably some excessive mash up of gibberish and _'Nnnnnyahh'_ and possibly a little dash of groping urges.

Leon keenly raised an eyebrow at me and I suddenly froze. No no please don't happen. I could feel the blood rushing to my head and there was a tingle in my nose. Having a nosebleed in front of a vampire is a death wish and I would like to not be ripped up in pieces. . .I would like to be bitten but I'm afraid that I'll be shredded in a million tiny Cloud pieces. . .Oh crap.

A deep growl vibrated in his chest and his eyes turned pitch black. For a mere second I saw my life flash before me. Now I knew what people meant how everything seems to go in slow motion right before you die.

The forest was still and the wind suddenly stopped cooling my hot skin. Leon opened his mouth and his predator fangs grew to a treacherous length. The demon blood snake ran out calmly through my nose and Leon's eyes blazed with the killing spice burning inside him.

I couldn't even speak but my tears seemed to do all the talking. I silently cried as Leon's ripping growl hissed out from his precious ready mouth. My hands prickled with icy sensations. Leon's eyes were pitch black and I stumbled backwards over a branch.

I was vulnerable on the ground. Similar to one of those cheesy Godzilla movies with the screaming person on the ground, with their hand foolishly over their face to try to block attacks; even though a mere hand would never block off a monster. I was that fool. Except there was no screaming my lips.

Leon stalked toward me and his fierce eyes met with my teary ones. The dark god growled softly like a lion and his smile was different now. . .it's as if he was a different person. His vampire instincts were flowing through his blue blood and he didn't see me for anything but a snack.

The blood stained my face and my tears didn't stop. Leon grabbed me by the shirt collar and yanked me up. My neck whipped back and I heard a loud snap. It didn't matter if my neck just broke because I would never need it when I am in dead mortal confetti.

I closed my eyes shut as he opened up his mouth. I heard his fangs when his hungry mouth opened. It was like pulling a sword out of its sheath and my body was the victim of this sinister knight. Tears streamed down my face.

I remembered his beautiful words: _"I need to make up for that nightmare I let you have. . .I'll give you a good 'dream' now so you will forget about that nightmare."_ It was no longer beautiful. Now it was just a nightmare. And I wanted no part of this madness anymore.

All I wanted was to be in his arms while he smiles. . .his safe, cold arms. This wasn't a dream. This was my death wish that I didn't want. My crimson blood. . .his pearly fangs. This was our _goodbye_.


	12. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch10

Leon's POV:

I locked my eyes on the helpless blond and I couldn't help but grin. My lime green venom was ready instead my fangs. I brushed my thumb over his lips to seduce him so he would calm down. Calm prey is easier to kill.

His taste was so close from my lips. I traced my finger under his jaw line and I scraped across something wet. It wasn't blood. Cloud was crying. Perfect. . .

Cloud was trembling. His body was shaking violently like he had the flu. The tears were streaming down from his closed eyes. Cloud frightfully bit his bottom lip and it left a deep gash.

My index finger wiped up the blood from his sweet lips and I sucked on it in my toxic mouth. His heartbeat grew perilously fast and his body became weak.

The blond fainted to the ground. My eyes flickered and I gasped like I was being suffocated. I'm a monster. . .I can't kill him. I can't kill him! What was I thinking? I love him!

I'm a monster. . . I fought with all my power to keep my vampire sense locked up inside my cold body. It was too hard for me to control. I could smell his fresh blood. My instincts were winning.

My finger traced over his lips again and I picked up more blood. There was a strong wind coming from behind me. The other vampires didn't fall for my trick. They knew we weren't in the car. They found Cloud's scent. They were coming for us.

His eyes stayed closed and my mind fought. The vampire senses poisoned me. I left him on the ground and I sped through the dead leave ground. Hundreds of scents pierced me as I flew through the air. His scent was the strongest . . . they were coming for us . . . for him. . .

I couldn't let them have Cloud. He is mine. I stopped and I raced back to Cloud. . . I couldn't leave him. My return was short and nothing seemed to change. His angel face was lit by the blue glow of the rising moon. He smelt too good.

Swiftly, I picked up the tall frail blond and I grinned at his unconscious face. I took off in flight through the trees to avoid seeing them. My hands gripped onto Cloud roughly and his bones were on the verge of shattering. I needed to taste him.

The wind whipped at my face as I flew as far away as I could. Where shall I go? My house. . .that's absolutely too far. I skidded to a slicing stop in front of Cloud's house. My grin formed again and I hauled him into his bedroom with cat-like ease.

I dropped him on his bed and a growl hummed through me again. His porcelain face looked breakable as I seized my hand on his neck.

I stopped and froze. I can't do this. I can't do this. My thoughts kept arguing with my vampire urges. I'm surprised I made it this far without killing him off.

My body felt sunken and strange. "I'm sorry…" I told Cloud and I retracted myself off the quilted bed and into the window frame. My hands slipped some of his clothes on my body. I would return them of course… I took one glance back before I took off away from him.

I'm a monster and Cloud is a human. I could have killed him. . .I could have killed the only one I love. The only one who loves me. I made my way into the forest and I ripped my way through the branches and tangled thorn bushes.

A rippling creek made me stop. I saw the reflection in the water. The other vampire smiled back at me.

My eyes stayed on the vampire's reflection. I couldn't manage to look at him in the eyes. "Hello Leon." He said to me and I let a growl shred up through my throat.

"I'll let you off with a warning. But if you bite him or do anything. . .then your head will be on a pike in bloody hell, Leon." His words made my blue blood curdle.

I looked up and he grinned a devilish smile. "I'll tell the others that you will be a good boy, Leon. Remember, we can see you." He spoke and he took off through the twisted oaks.

I kept my snarls inside me but my eyes flashed to onyx. No one could take my love away from me. No one could tell me that I couldn't be with Cloud. I can control myself. . .I can. . .

Cloud woke with uneasy breath and tears in his eyes. His neck hurt a little but no serious damage. The sky was pitch black outside and Cloud's daring hand touched his neck. No bite marks…..he was still human…

I sat from an elm tree about 500 feet away from his house but I could still see everything. His panicked face…his glowing electric blue eyes…his beautiful lips. I looked down and my body felt weak.

My breath was shaking too. My felt my cheek and it was wet with dark blue tears. I was crying…I forced myself to look back up and I saw Cloud at his bedroom window. His face was scared and he looked like he was about to scream.

"LEON!" Cloud screamed out with a trembling fear in his voice. The blond sat back down on his lightly quilted bed and he put his head between his knees. "Leon…come back. You are not a monster…I love you…Come back…" Cloud pleaded and more tears fell from my eyes.

I growled as I fought back the tears. I didn't want to drag him deeper into my dangerous life. . .

Cloud foolishly managed to get out of his house except now he was fully clothed. I heard the ripping sonic shrieks from the vampires in the forest. They were watching me. I knew they wouldn't harm him if I stood still…

The blond couldn't see me as he stepped over the blueberry stained leaves. My nose tingled with the scent of moist wildflower and violette ivy. "Cloud…" I whispered so softly that not even the other vampires could have heard.

My tears fell as I watched him looking through the woods with a frightened look on his face. "Leon!" Cloud called out but it seemed like his voice stood still in the fog in front of him.

It was pitch black and there was no star to shed light in the bleak sky. Cloud sat down against a tree not far from me. I hesitantly moved across the branch and I say he was asleep. "Cloud…" I said in a tiny voice.

His eyes flinched as his nightmares returned. My blue blood burned to see him suffering. I couldn't protect him anymore. I crawled onto the tree branch high above his head. My hand reached out and I touched my own face. I traced my jaw line and I closed my eyes.

I couldn't touch him. . . But I couldn't stand to have him in pain. I fought away my vampire senses and I leaped down in front of him. My eyes flickered like grey flames. His face was still panicking with nightmares. I extended my cold hand and I cupped his cheek.

His eyes opened and I wanted more then anything but to feel my lips with his. "Leon…" Cloud said and he touched my face. My senses kicked in once I heard them rushing for me.

I knew this might be my last chance. "Kiss me." I said and Cloud stared at me with fear in his eyes. I don't remember my human life…how it felt to be kissed. Cloud leaned in quickly. His lips were warm and it seemed like it could have happened….

Our moment was lost as the wind whished with the blood drinkers. I was attacked to the wet floor by a blood thirsty vampire.

"Run Cloud!" I screamed and he got up in a flashed. He ran for his life as the two vampires tore their teeth at me repeatedly. I closed my eyes and I felt them hit me.

I couldn't let them have Cloud. I couldn't…But I didn't want the nightmares hurting him…I'm his angel.

Cloud my heart to fill my empty chest. I needed love. I needed someone to love. My black mind swirled as I landed in a rocky stream. The water burned at my skin as my blue blood escaped my veins.

My eyes opened and I saw the similar vampires growling over me. "You're lucky, Leon…very lucky." The vampire spoke to me in my ear and he planted a devilish kiss on my cheek.

"Aren't you glad I turned you into one of us?" The same demon asked me. I wasn't one of them…I'm a protector…I'm not a monster. They left me to bleed in the water. The side of my face pressed against the white river stones. I closed my eyes. This wasn't over…..I won't go down…I'll be there for you, Cloud.


	13. Beautiful Nightmare: Ch11

Cloud's POV:

I heard them. . .they were biting Leon. . .they were hurting him. My eyes filled with an immense flood of insomnia and hysteria. The ground seemed to disappear underneath my feet as I imagined all the growls and shredding teeth. My head felt too light; I couldn't faint…not now…

The world was turning and my vision sputtered in the labyrinth of the midnight woods. I wanted to go back and save him…I wanted to die with him. My mind debated and I skidded my running to a stop in the earthy floor. I sprinted back to Leon as the clawing trees thrashed at me.

My eyes widened and my feet stopped. He was gone…There was no sign of Leon except the silvery blue blood on the river rock. My royal protector…gone…

I put my hands over my face and I found myself shaking with sorrow. My tears were falling wildly and I curled up on the ground. I smelled the sweet smell of Leon's breath and it only made me sob more. The roused breeze silenced me to sleep.

The nightmares returned…except now I wanted to go to Leon in the forest but I couldn't find him. _'LEON!'_ I cried out but my voice got cut short. A hand wrapped around my waist and the creature dragged me down into the depths of obscurity.

I woke with a sharp choking on dewdrop air. It was raining and I was soaked as the creek began to rise with water. I stumbled upward and I walked home through the deadly white mushrooms with my head hung low. Thoughts blistered in my hollow mind.

Ever feel like there is a design and specialized universal path for everyone? As if there is no future that it is already out like a brick house and all you have to do is follow the plans and lay the bricks over the cement…until it gets to be your final rest…

I don't want a final rest. I want to live life for ever. I don't want life to be planned out for me. I want to decide for myself. I can't have my decisions to be medaled with. I want to be able to be with Leon without having something in the way!

My anger ripped through my scarred lungs and I slammed open the front door to my house. It was 8am and I grabbed my wallet off the barely used kitchen towel. I put my hand on my house key necklace before I left my damp house for work. My thoughts didn't stop as I began my long bike ride through the autumn rain.

Axel leaned against the pole under the dripping wet awning. He had his arm looped around the hips of a dirty blond with an earring of a sitar on his left ear. A cigarette was placed precisely between the fire boy's index and middle finger.

"Good morning sunshine." The red head purred at me as I put my bike under the shelter awning. He could sense his smirking. "You're lookin' yummy this morning." His snake tongue flicked at the Y-word. I locked it against the gardenia plant box and I shot my eyes at him.

"Cut the shit, Axel. Or I'll cork your ass with that cigarette." I said and Axel looked stunned at me. He was silent and the David Bowie impersonator was too. The conversation was over and I left into the inside of the auto shoppe.

Business was slow but the hours seemed slower. The windows were slapped with constant pouring rain and I scowled as my hands went through the tire shipment papers. All of them were approved and rechecked. I never thought I would say this but. . .I wish I had some work to do.

Axel's lover boy walked in and I couldn't help but have my envying eyes lock in him. How come that idiot fire guy gets a boyfriend but I can't even get Leon to stay with me?! My tears threatened to pour but the mullet head distracted me with a hasty question.

"Where do I clock my..erhm…hours?" He asked and I raised my sharp eyebrow. "Excuse me?" I asked and the blond made a whiny sigh. "Aw man…hold on." The fire's quencher spoke with a Californian accent. Cleary he wasn't from England.

He fumbled his hand in his cigarette scented dark parade coat. He pulled an empty pack of cigarettes out and he took a business card out of it. "Right there!" He said triumphantly as he tapped his leather gloved finger on the card.

I picked up the auto shoppe card and it made a dry scratching sound on the tall hospital-like counter. I brought it down to my diminutive desk level and my eyes read over the written back of the shoppe card.

_Demyx will be replacing the dinky cottage door with a glass door today, Cloud. He should be done by 11. Make sure you record the time when he arrived and left._

Thanks, Reno Flynn

The Demyx person had a giddy smile on his face like he just executed mission impossible. I scribbled down _10:02am Axel's door boy_ on to the tacky whiteboard behind me. "Hey!" Demyx scuffled at me and I couldn't help but smile. I waved him away with my hand.

"Don't worry. I'll change it. Just get to work." I said and the rockstar grimaced at me. He turned away sharply and he stuffed a free mint off the counter's candy dish into his mouth. Demyx gagged on it and he spit it into his hand. The plastic wrapper was still on it and I rolled my eyes.

The hour went by and I ordered new mufflers and exhaust pipes online because our stock was running low. I was getting suspicious why so many people came in and said that someone shoved fruit into their exhaust pipe. I couldn't help but laugh at the thought. Oh well, it least we got more business because of someone's _fruit shenanigans_.

Axel came in with a bitten peach in his hands. Demyx finished disposing of the old door and the red head took Demyx away. The new door was quite nice and I could actually see who was coming through the shoppe's door now. If only he replaced the garage door that leads into this room too.

I sighed as I stared at the plain white door and the brass doorknob turned. My breath locked in my throat but once I saw it wasn't Reno, I let a breath out in relief. One of the employees, Vincent, came into the room and he stole a caramel from the candy dish. I glowered with a smug grin on my face. No costumer was ever going to take a candy from that dish.

My eyes wanted to close but I forced them open. "Tired?" Vincent asked. He was clearly making small talk. "Very." I mumbled as I scribbled a drawing of a raven on my post-it note that read: _shipment paid on 09/08/99_. The pen ran dry and I walked over to Vincent. He sat comfortably on the hideous white denim couch and I slumped on the arm of the couch.

"So…are you excited for the new millennium?" He asked with a big stationed grin on his face. "Heh the year 2000. I forgot about that." I said. It was 1999 and it was only mid-September; but all the small town could talk about was the new millennium.

Rumor was that in 1900, the sky flashed green and shooting stars rained across the midnight sky. People say it was like jet planes covered in the whitest glitter. I think it is all a hoax. I don't believe it happened.

"Do you believe in the millennium rumor?" I asked and Vincent sucked on the caramel. "Well, people say it the _'Night of Fallen Angels'_ occurs every millennium in Winchester. I guess I'll believe it when I see it. But I think it's just another stupid Winchester legend." The brunette said with a slight laugh.

"Yeah…just another stupid Winchester legend." I whispered. Vincent always seemed to be the only non-jackass at this shoppe. We talked awhile about how snobby the employees and Axel can be. Vincent said that Cid has been stealing equipment and selling it online for extra cash. Cid was a thief. A lying, clever thief.

He couldn't bear to tell Reno because Reno has almost fired Vincent many times. Cid would do something like spill over a bottle of engine oil and Reno would automatically assume that Vincent did it. "I'm sorry…we all need a break." I said and Vincent sighed with a nervous expression on his face. I never saw Vincent act nervous.

"Well, Reno always gives us the last week off of each year so maybe…we could go see the Night of Fallen Angels together." The brunette proposed and I almost choked on my own breath.

"Uhhh…" I could only say that. Vincent and ME?! What the hell…he is asking me on a date…we are only acquaintances. Sure we may agree on some things but I…I'm Leon's. I can't be with him.

Luckily the teapot upstairs started screaming and I was relieved. "OH I need to take that off the stove." I said and I ran straight upstairs before he could say anything. "Cloud!" He exclaimed with a confused tone.

My shoes tracked up the carpeted stairs and my mind was shaking with my lame excuses. Why couldn't I just say no to him? I'm breaking his heart more by being a dick and making excuses.

I was up at the loft-like 2nd floor. This was the first time I've been up there. The room looked so modern and clean compared to the testosterone environment downstairs. There were no tawdry car posters or anything to do with the shoppe.

It was like a polished fresh pearl. There were a couple of leathery white bean bags and a short matching carpet all through the loft. I turned off the stove and the teapot hushed.

The window was open next to the stove…who put the teapot on here? I thought I was the only one who drank tea in this place. It was like they knew that I was about to do something stupid…perfect timing to have the teapot go off.

Raindrops flew in and soaked the champagne coloured chair. I slid the wooden window frame down and it was extra quiet now without the monstrous storm winds. So this is what it felt like to be Goldilocks.

My gut was telling me that I shouldn't be here. I couldn't help but stay. It was like some force drawing me in. Maybe I was more like Hansel and Gretel…maybe someone wanted me to stay.

It felt so weird. It was like a bohemia or a dream. The room smelled so familiar. It was like milk and honey….like Leon. My eyes widened and I dropped the teapot as I was pouring my cup. I eeped and then covered my mouth.

The burning liquid was leaking into the carpet and my hand burned like hell. I uncovered my mouth and I looked around the room then on the ceiling. Was Leon here? The feathery air around me felt like dancing angel wings.

"Leon?" I whispered and the only response I could hear was the antique spoon wind chimes outside of the window. I could even smell the wet sterling silver. No one was here…Leon wasn't here…he was gone. I felt empty.

Downstairs, the monotone clock with a tacky racecar on the face of it made a loud _vroom_ when it struck noon. As if a chain reaction was set off, Reno walked into the room from the repair garage. I looked down the steep stairs and I felt like I was going to lose myself.

He was shirtless with low hip jeans. Rain stuck to his ice sculpture chest and his eyes seemed to be more aqua today. Almost like polished tanzanite. I couldn't stop staring. "Cloud? Where are you?" Reno asked and I stumbled with my quick feet down the stairs.

My trespassing feelings were gone and I sat down at my desk. Vincent wasn't there anymore…poor Vincent. I felt so bad to just end the conversation like that but I didn't know what to say… I wrote down the shipment dates and Reno smiled as I busied myself.

Leon. . .I can't be with Leon. . .he is gone. . .but Reno. . .he is probably still mad at me. He hasn't spoken to me since we made out. . .Maybe if I make out with him again…I could be on top of his rain stained body…fighting for dominance on the counter…Our lips colliding with our clothing ripping…that sweet taste in our hot mouths…his hands tugging off my jeans… Our bodies pressing like pieces of a puzzle…skin to skin contact as our clothes slip off…infinitely smooth legs… His hand going down my…

"Are you hungry?" He suddenly asked and I realized I was biting my pencil. He put his hands on the tall hospital-like counter in front of my desk. "Yes…" I managed to say without having my inner thoughts go crazy. He smiled at me and his words made my heart light up. "C'mon. I'll take you out."

I stumbled up out of my cheap swivel chair and I slyly checked my breath while he put a milky blue button up shirt on. My breath smelt fine…but not good enough. He buttoned it partly and I snagged a cheap mint from the dainty candy dish for the costumers.

The dish fell off the counter and Reno caught it in his hand. He put it back on the counter and he grinned at me. My mind beat itself up for my stupid embarrassing moment. I'm an idiot. "How does it taste?" Reno asked suddenly yet swimmingly.

"Okay." I said and I tried to look a bit pissed off to hide my blush. Reno stepped forward and I felt the counter poke at my back. He put his hands on either side of me and our chests pressed. The warm man cupped his hand on the back of my neck and he leaned in.

Our eyes closed and his mouth traced over my parted lips. His other hand delicately followed the strange rhythm as he snaked it down my back. He hooked his hand on my belt loop and then his hand followed down my thigh.

Reno locked my right leg around his hips and he lightly licked his tongue on my bottom lip. The taste of him was so good. Almost intoxicating. He inhaled and his eyes flickered open. "Peppermint." He said with a grin and Reno was off of me when I opened my blue eyes.

What the hell was that for…and why did he stop? Reno chuckled to himself and he tugged my sleeve. He pressed his hips against the foggy glass door and it opened without a sound.

We went out the door and it was misty now but the cobbled streets were decked with reflective grey puddles. He was practically walking me like a dog. His quick long steps were incredibly fast yet smooth. It was hard to keep up.

"Grab me n' Dem a bite, will ya'?" Axel called from the corner drug store's entrance. The blonde was practically all over Axel's body. I watched him kiss on Axel's neck and I felt my neck burn. He caressed his hands down the red head's lower back.

The blond didn't let his lips move away from Axel's neck. It reminded me of Leon…If only Leon bit me…If only I was a vampire… I don't want to be stuck as a mortal like the rest of these guys…they have no idea what I want.

Reno rolled his eyes and he looked at me. My mind snapped out of daydream mode. "Let's just not mention the food when we get back to the shoppe. I bet the airhead will forget by then." He suggested with a gorgeous smile.

"Yeah…" I said and he laughed at his secret joke. Was it something I said? …or maybe it was my stupid lack of saying anything.

My limitless thoughts were bustled and stuffed into my head. It was chaotic like 2am city madness with sirens, screeching braking cars, and rabid rottweilers barking at the smiling moon. I know Leon is real…he has to be…

The illuminati artist gently guided me with his euphoria filled smile. My ambling felt clumsy and misconstrued. It was like going on stage in front of hundreds and thousands of people…and my routine was as pathetic as my hopes.

Rosewater's Café. I've never been there before…I couldn't remember the last time I even went to a restaurant. We stepped inside and it was more dead then a catacomb. It looked very…ugly. The maroon booths and the abundance of old people stuffing their faces with poached eggs.

I winced and Reno led me to the counter with his hand on my shoulder. My stool was semi comfortable and Reno was right next to me. It smelled like wet newspapers and scalded onion bagels.

A lady gave us menus and I let Reno do the pathetic _flirt-and-be-nice-to-her_ bit. Clearly he was doing this instead of leaving a good tip. He could do whatever he wants…as long as I got him to stay with me.

"I'll be right back with the drinks." She said with her make-up piled face. A man coughed…well he yakked repeatedly from many stools away from us. His beard looked like it was going to swallow up his whole face. I winced. I knew my hair was going to smell like greasy bacon later. I couldn't stand the disgusting atmosphere.

"Can we sit outside?" I asked and he raised an eyebrow. "But it's freezing out there." Reno claimed and I felt like smacking him across the face. "I don't care." I said and I grabbed his hand. Reno snatched the menus in his other hands as I hauled him to the small eating area outside.

We were alone as we took our seat under the white and blue stripped awning. The grape vine green metal chairs were freezing and I felt my body go numb. Reno's eyes trapped my gaze like I was a fly caught up in his morning dew covered web. "Cold?" He asked with a grin. I nodded and he laughed. "I told you so." He said and I glared at him.

"Be quiet." I snapped and the waitress came prancing out with a cup of tea and a bottle of something. Either cola or beer. "It's on the house." She said as she handed the bottle to Reno.

"I don't drink any alcohol." Reno said with a crinkled nose. "Oh I'm sorry. Can I get you anything else?" She asked and her butt was practically in my face as she talked to Reno. I was ignored.

I sipped my tea and Reno sighed. "Do you have bottled water?" Reno asked and she shook her head _no_. "Nevermind. Just get the blond the special, alright hun?" Reno said and she left without any words. I let that phrase slide away. If he called me _the blond_ again then I'll hit him.

Reno sighed and he played with his steak knife between his fingers. His eyes were suddenly very fierce. "I could go buy you a bottle of water if you would like…" I offered and he shook his head.

His eyes snapped back to reality and his face was calm. Reno dropped his knife. I went under the table cloth to fetch it and Reno was there. Our noses bumped. "Sorry." I said as I rubbed my cold nose. "You're still cold." He said with longing lips and I merely nodded. "Yeah…very cold." I whispered and his face was coming closer to mine.

Reno got face-to-face with me and he broke out into a cute smile. His eyes looked down and he picked up the knife. "Your food is here." Reno pointed out and I saw the waitress's stumpy heels from under the table cloth. I got out from under the table with wicked embarrassment boiling in my face.

The waitress looked a little curious and she put the plate down in front of me. It was a sandwich with mysterious looking potato salad on the side. The smell of the sliced pickles on the side stung my dry nose. She left and Reno was watching me.

I forked a pickle and ate it in two bites. My stomach was empty…I didn't realize how hungry I was. I forked the other pickle and I noticed Reno was still staring. "Are you hungry?" I asked and Reno grinned. "Yeah… very hungry." His lips articulated precisely. "Then why didn't you get anything?" I asked before I took a bite of my waiting sandwich.

"If this restaurant was the only restaurant in the world…I would starve myself. Their food is terrible." Reno said with despondent eyes. I swallowed the dry meat and rye bread…he was right…it is terrible. "Then why did you take me here?" I asked and he shrugged. "I've never been here before. I thought I'd try it." Reno grinned and I was very confused.

"Hold on Mr. Cheshire Cat. If you've never been here before then how do you know the food is terrible?" I asked and he laughed a little at my nickname for him. "I read the reviews." He stated and his eyes told me that the conversation was over and it was time to move on to the next subject. He still is confusing me…oh well, he better pay the bill.

Reno watched me finish the crusty sandwich. "I'd prefer if you would stop staring." I declared as I forked the mushy potato salad. It made a gross noise and I put my fork down immediately. "I'm not staring at you." He said as he grinned. His eyes were focused on his menu.

The ridiculous gentleman's teasing was driving me batty. He put 10 sterling pounds on the tablecloth and he took my hand. "Stop being so bitchy." He avowed with a grin on his face as we left the café. "I'm not being bitchy…" I growled and he wrapped his arm around my cold body.

"Be quiet." He said with a mimicking voice. The tea got my system caffeinated; I was more awake now. Reno pulled out a pocket watch out of his jean pocket. "It's 4 o'clock." He stated and my mouth hung open. "What?! That's not possible." I said and I searched for my watch. Wait I don't own a watch…I felt stupid, again.

Reno's stomach rumbled quietly and his arm slipped down to encircle around my hips. He opened the glass door for me and he led me up the stairs. "Would you like a tart…lemon… thingy?" Reno asked as I slumped down in one of the beanbags.

"No thanks." I bluntly said as I stared the ceiling. His hands rummaged through the cabinets and through away random sugar packets and straws. I didn't question him; I didn't want another Cheshire cat answer. I mindlessly get off the bean bag and sit in front of a window.

I played my fingers over the foggy window and I heard Reno fiddling with the thermostat. "Stupid Axel turned up the heat." He said and I looked over. His shirt was off. Reno caught me staring at him and he smiled. "Enjoying yourself?" Reno asked as he peered at my rising erection under my jeans. …dammit.

Reno strolled over to me with his fingers unbuttoning his pants. My eyes were as wide as humanly possible as he seized his lips onto my mouth. The red head got on top of me with his jeans still hanging on him. He sucked my cold tongue with his hand pinching my nipple under my shirt.

My moan enhanced up my vocal cords and I let it out of my mouth. I lied on the floor and he took out a switch knife from his back pocket. He sliced the knife up my shirt then let the knife tumble over to the other side of the room.

The alluring man's hands practically tore off my shirt and he pressed our exposed chests together as he curled his legs to straddle on my boney hips. He folded his tongue along with mine inside our messy mouths.

"I want you, Cloud. I want you now…" His words whispered as his hands stroked down my lower back. The carpet formed around my heated body and I felt Reno's tongue flick out of my mouth.

One of his hands pulled out from behind me and he licked his fingers. A gasp escaped from his mouth as I sucked at his untouched neck. I moaned at the pain building inside my pants…I've never felt like this before. I didn't know what I was doing but it was so good.

His wet hand entered the inside of my boxers and he cupped my stiff member. Leon's face flashed through my mind and I let Reno strip us down to nothing. Our legs twisted and his mouth was right next to my ear. "Ahhh…." His quiet moan was threatening to build.

My hand gripped the back of Reno's neck as I force the kiss to never stop. "Mmm." He purrs into my mouth as he strokes our members in his hand. I didn't want to lose myself…I felt strange…my body felt strange. His lips parted from mine and he began sucking down my V-line. I felt his saliva right above my member.

I'm Leon's…not Reno's…I couldn't help but have his fingers wrap around my caressed member. His mouth was around my tip and his tongue teased me. "LEON!!!" I got away from Reno and he stared up at me with sweat glistening on his chest. His eyes looked away and he put on his clothes without a word. "Get the fuck out of here, Cloud." Reno said without looking at me.

I was out of there with record time. My clothes were on and I got onto my bike within 30 seconds. I was already out of town by the time it was a minute. I rode my bike and I wanted the rain clouds to send down some kamikaze lightening bolt to destroy me. Unfortunately, lightening never hits the rain…it would be impossible for the bolt to dodge through this typhoon weather.

The mud was too much so I rode in the ripe grass. I wanted to scream…all these thoughts in my head…why couldn't I just be with Leon? That's all I wanted…I didn't want the burning fireworks in my mind to continue anymore. It was too much…

Once I got into my house, I trucked up the stairs and I shed my shoes along the way. The hallway's splintery floor attacked my feet and I swung open my bedroom door. My room was the same…no Leon…

I dropped to my knees and I felt like I could scream my heart out like one of those passionate sorrow singers on stage…I nuzzled my face on my knees and I stayed curled up on the floor. My body didn't want to reach my bed. I didn't deserve to have comfort….

The mornings passed and eventually I decided to use my bed instead of the floor for sleeping. I showed up for work and Reno mysteriously disappeared after our _mishap_.

Vincent wouldn't talk to me anymore because he got the sense that I didn't want to be more then friends with him. The Demyx guy kept showing up and making out with Axel on the couch.

And of course, Leon didn't show up…he didn't even appear in my dreams. All I dreamt of now was ravens flying up into the sky then falling….but they kept flying back up…I wasn't that determined…but I should be.

I made some improvements on the house and I decided to plant some pumpkins in the yard. It was October 4th and I marked my calendar with a dull red marker. It had been twenty six days since I saw Leon. I was worrying…what if he is really gone. The image of the blue blood on the river rocks flashed through my mind.

The bellowing grandfather clock in my tiny house rang. It was time for work. I sighed and tossed my gloves onto the step of my porch. My legs swung onto my bike…I needed to get my truck fixed… I frowned and rode into town.

Work was boring. I spent my time making a spider web out of some neon yellow string I found in the garage. Cid raised his eyebrow at me and told me to bring it back when I was done. I decided to stroll over to Zack who was staring into his cup of burnt coffee.

"I need to get my truck fixed…How much would it be?" I asked Zack and he set his cup down on the work table. "What's the damage?" He asked and I looked away in embarrassment.

"It got hit by lightening." I said and he started laughing. "Sorry…excuse that laugh. How 'bout you just buy a new one? It would be expensive and nearly impossible to do a good job on repairing your truck." He suggested with a hidden chuckle in his eyes.

"Well…thanks for the help." I said and he nodded then sipped his coffee. "Could you tell Vincent to not set the temperature so high next time?" Zack asked Cid as I went back into the lobby of the shoppe. I slumped down behind my desk and started making the spider web.

Hours passed by and my eyes grew jaded. I wondered what Vincent thought of me…Axel was already excited once he found out about Reno and I practically having sex. I wondered if Vincent knew…I didn't want to break his heart.

He has never been mean to me. I fingered and plucked at the taunt web I created. My thoughts were brushed away as I sipped my lukewarm tea from my own teacup. I didn't dare to go upstairs anymore so I brought my own canister of hot tea to work.

It was yummy and I didn't have to risk seeing Reno. I took another sip and the door from the garage swung open. Cid walked in and I handed his the string. He stared at my creation for a moment and he didn't ask any questions.

He is a smart man to walk away. I didn't want to talk. My thoughts wandered again as I drew a tree on my post-it note. A tear slipped down my face as I drew Leon inside the tree.

My fingers brushed up and down the pen as I pictured what I look like. I drew myself next to him and in the picture I was kissing his cheek. Demyx was laughing in the room and Axel made ridiculous cooing noises.

My mind shunned them. I smiled and I drew a heart above our heads. I decided to hang the spider web on the pumpkin on the counter but a sudden gasp made me sit back down.

"Axel…Feel me…" Demyx moaned and I could tell what those morons were up to. "Axel, this isn't a whore house so stop jerking off with that ferret head." I growled and Axel's chuckle echoed from behind the counter. I was happy that I couldn't see them.

"Someone's jealous." Axel said and I turned off my computer. "I'm not jealous. I just don't want to hear you sucking Demyx's face off." I stated with broiling anger in my voice.

"Would you like to add to the sucking?" Axel asked and I laughed to myself. I grabbed the economy size bag of deluxe peppermints and I poured it onto the couple. "Suck on this, bastards." I said and Demyx screamed.

Cid busted into the room. "What the hell is going on in here?!" He demanded but I was already on my bike and down the road. I was off on my determination flight…I wanted to stay hopeful…

Where would I find Leon? Dead Raven Path? …that thing goes on for acres… Um…a tree?! It was useless to try and find Leon. On the country side of town, everything seemed to go on for infinity…It was like looking for seraphim in hell. It was pretty much impossible.

My bike skidded down the dust path. It was remarkable how fast the weather could change in September. The land was as dry as a drought in a matter of days yet the clouds still hung like blue filters in the sky. My eyes were pierced with extreme focus.

I stopped my creamsicle orange bike and I dropped it. I ran into Dead Raven Path with niduses breaking under my shoes. The spiders' eggs popped underneath my steps and the obnoxious plethora of olives burst. The wide nexus of trees had my mind twirling. Where would I start?

…Leon is still my protector….so he has to protect me. As my plans consumed inside my mind, I began to head to do the stupidest thing I've ever done. I ran to the ledge above thee endless lake that was as murky as sunken hourglass. A smile emerged on my face as I ambled up to the higher elevations.

As I got to Devil's Mountain, I could see everything below me. It was the heads of trees and the sounds of the rushing wind. I curled my feet up to the edge and I dropped down.

I was falling at a rapid pace and the seconds seemed to happen to fast. Hundreds of feet were disappearing and my thoughts were frozen. I was an idiot. I closed my eyes and I landed softly.

"Open your eyes." A voice said and I did as I was told. I was in Leon's arms. I got out of his arms and I gave him a full hug with tears streaming down my face.

"Promise me…I don't care if I die…Just promise me that you will never disappear on me again…I don't care if the bloody idiot vampires are after you…just never leave me alone like that again…" I cried out and he held me tightly.

"I promise, my darling…I love you so much…" Leon spoke with his enchanting voice as he buried his face onto my shoulder. We stood there hugging for a long time. I felt so good against his marble sculpture body.

"So…do you forgive me for that incident we had some weeks ago?" He asked and I snuggled my face into his coat. "I forgive you." I whispered and the icy air tingled my lips.

Leon wrapped his arms around my lower back now and he spun me in a full circle. I smiled brightly as our faces met. He stopped the spin and looked deeply into my eyes. "You're beautiful, Cloud…" Leon said with tears beginning to leak from his eyes.

Why was he crying? "Leon…" I said and I watched a tear fall down from his eye. I kissed his cheek and I tasted the salty sweetness of the tear.

I retreated immediately and his eyes were shocked. "You…kissed me." Leon said and I nodded shyly. "You deserve more then one kiss though, beauty." I muttered lightly with my eyes focused on my shoes.

"May you…" His voice stopped and he stepped slowly toward me. "What?" I asked and it looked like he was changing his mind. "Will you be my…boyfriend?" He asked and I hugged him strongly. "Yes!" I exclaimed and he gently hugged me back.

He smiled and pulled away from the hug. "I know this may sound strange but…I have a surprise for you." He said and he stood before me with a beautiful lustrous smile. "Follow me." He told me and I was speechless.

"Um…okay." I said with thoughts running through my mind. I secured my hand on his straight arm as we walked over the ground's brambles. I didn't want anymore surprises…I wanted to know the future…I wanted to be a blue blooded royal body just like Leon…I wanted to be with him forever.

I was curious when we were in front of my house. Leon put my bike in the shed and I leaned in the damped doorway. "Why are we here?" I asked and he walked me out of the shed. "Go upstairs and pack. You are sleeping over tonight, love." Leon told me with a grin.


	14. RenoxLeon: Lust for Blood Series Extra

Leon's POV:

Winchester was more of a quaint village than a town in the 16th century. I grew up in a small white cottage with the smell of horses and well water.

My nights were but melted candles and the lullabies of the blistering wind. I always had a strange hollow feeling in my rib cage as I blew out the candle. It was the feeling of being watched…

Of course mother and father never thought much of me. They did not look over me or watch my every move. If I came home and I covered in mud or I had a pair of stolen shoes in my hands, they just wouldn't even bare a few words to me.

I felt plain. It was the same when I went out to sell barley to local villagers. Their eyes looked right through me as if I was no one. I felt average.

Although I've had these accounts…I've been told by some random faces of people that I am an attractive boy. I'm not much of a boy anymore now though…

I suppose I never really had the prosperous youth that other children had…My smile was genuine but I felt like something was missing or detached

It was a simple life for me: work, eat, worry, and sleep. I was merely some foggy water in a stone well in their life or a log in the fire. As long as I worked in the garden and weeded by the eggplants, then I would be ignored. My inner gut always had the urge for rebellion. My friends tempted me to dare the daring.

By the time I was 19, I decided it was time for doing the unexpected and to become my inner dare devil. My friend crouched behind the wooden fence as I looked around cautiously for my parents.

I planted the pea plant seeds into the snug holes in the soil. "Leon…Leon." He whispered and I nodded. "Wait…" I whispered in a voice that seemed so odd to me. I barely spoke to anyone and it sounded so mature to my ears.

My grey ocean eyes looked at him and I snuck over the jungle of grass. His wildflower blue eyes locked on me as he helped me over the rusty nailed fence. "Will, you are mad." I bluntly said as he laughed to himself.

"Oh Leon. It is just a small stroll down Dead Raven's Path. What harm could come upon us? We do not explore nor do we rebel. We must do what is to be done. No need to fuss, my friend." The brunette said too me with an all but too giddy chirp to his voice.

"If I shall die then you must plow for my family." I said with a smile and he managed a bright grin. He never seemed to be in a bad mood. In any condition, whether it be a raging thunder storm or a terribly hot day, he was happier then any human.

I always had a strange feeling about him when I was with him. It felt odd to sit with him in the tree by the sparkling bog. His honey sweet breath seemed to close to me when he whispered to me. My hand seemed to ensue to end up locked with his when we walked.

As the ribbon like fog tied at our ankles, Will took my hand in his. It seemed normal to me but there was a nervous glint in his eyes. "I stole something…" Will suddenly sputtered out.

I dropped my hand from his and a smear of flashing anger came over me. "Will! You know you can't do this to us! This a complete sin!" I spoke out and birds seemed to ruffle their feathers in the high birch trees.

The dark haired teen stepped over some hollow tree seeds and undisturbed olives. He climbed through a black berry bush and he pulled out two sheaths. "Will…honestly now…" I said with sulk tantalizing in my profound voice.

He pulled one of the swords and tossed it too me. I caught it by its handle and he gave me a polite yet humored nod. "Very well then, Mr. Lionheart." He said with a slight brash tone as he began his promenade down Dead Raven Path.

I followed him with a scared beating heart that raised its volume. My ears felt hot as my beat got louder. The twigs snapped underneath Will's confident steps and he held his chin up high as he swung his sword like a duke's cane.

As we got deeper into the forest, it started getting darker. The canopy closed in above me like a claustrophobic tunnel. The wind shook the lichen covered trees and a loud creak hit high above me. "Will…" I whispered as I kept my eyes on the knotted branches above my dizzy head.

"Ha!" Will exclaimed as he thrust his sword at me. I automatically assumed proper position with my left arm behind my back. My sword's metal clashed with his and he smiled at me. I managed a grin. "A challenge it is." I spoke with keen words.

It was like a blur….our swords and fine footsteps were whipping like a rhythmic waltz. I found him coming closer to me and my footsteps guided me back. It was getting to be a slope and my feet slid like a new born goose's steps.

My thoughts couldn't process every enticing sound and movement. The land leveled out and the fog was thin around my frigid breath. "Has thou come upon the thought of defeat yet?" Will asked me with his capricious smile.

"Not until I see the one to be defeated. My match is but of truer nature then yours." I said and he laughed my comment away like a sweep of gathered dust. "Until the fallen has become to true then we will see who is truer." His voiced said and my footsteps backtracked.

An outlandish smell bestowed upon me. It was the fresh and airy. I heard the water beckon in the icy aura. It was the smell of the secret lake. It was the lake…I heard the stories of the creatures of the night living at this place.

The creatures that cleaved through the barren sky in a camouflage of onyx raven feathers and fragile star dust.

The slicing clank of the hollow ringing swords made my life slow. Our swords played a pattern as I stepped back. Further and further as our entwining glances shifted. Will's face gapped and it took me a split second to realize.

I fell off the curved land and through the 5 foot fall. The water splashed me and I grabbed the sharp metal without thinking.

"LEON!" I heard Will's watery voice echo. My ears filled with the frozen water but I saw through the rippling blue water above me. The winter water felt like it was about to ice over.

My veins on my fingers sliced as my heavy shoes dragged me down. I let go of my sword and its shine disappeared as it sank into the bottomless depths. The light started to fade and I fell in a silt thud on the floor that curve to the deeper level. I didn't dare to go down further.

Something swam past me and I caught a bluish glint to its body. I pulled off my shoes and my clothing. My air was dieing away and my lungs felt like knives were poking at their fleshy shells.

I drifted forward and my head felt distant. My fainting symptoms were drawing near. Drowning was the absolute fear of mine. A diluted laugh fluttered past me like a pairing of butterflies. It danced around me as I entered the stringy algae and duckweed.

Those eyes….I remember those black eyes and that shredding smile. It was a luminous figure in the dark. His granite skin and sharp fangs. It was a creature of the night.

My voice expelled and water swallowed my lungs up. I was choking and he had me in his arms. I heard Will's screams and wild kicking from the far away surface. His lips played over my neck like his secret tune. I felt the teeth sink in and his hands caressed me as he drank me in.

I remember opening my eyes and him looking at me. I was on a bed covered in fine silks and godly stitching. The tapestries had crests of serpents and claws of birds. My mind swirled as my mind took in the king-like room.

My eyes widened in the dim room. The moon light pieced through the arched window and it made the walls penetrate a deep fig colouration.

"You're perfect." He said and his red hair cascaded in a long ponytail. "Where's Will?" I demanded and I hit my fist at his chest. "Axel took care of him." He said and the unfamiliar name was added to my hit list.

"Where is Will?" I demanded and the vampire smirked. "He is the undead now…just like you and me." He said and I froze.

Vampire…I was a vampire… I scuttled out of the weighted covers and I found the rusting mirror. My skin was smooth and light. My eyes seemed to have an electric singe to them.

"Come along. You must learn the ways of a protector." He spoke with words I couldn't understand. "Protector? Me?" I asked and he nodded. "You close minded mortals must know that we are the good guys. I only took you down because I was hunting. You were in my territory. Mermaid hunting." He said and I winced at the new information.

He sighed and explained. "Listen closely and broaden your docile mind. Yes these creatures exist. We are protectors. We are assigned new people to look over at night. We can read their emotions and dreams but you only have _one_ person per year. You have your own mortal. You must protect them from nightmares caused by the demons. Clear?" He asked and my mind wavered as he led me down corridors of columns and oil paintings of protectors.

"Yes…clear." I whispered and I realized I was wearing black knee high jockey-like boots with black pants tucked into them. My shirt was a ruffled cotton tunic with cascading sleeves. The coat I wore was buttoned with gold emblems and it was ruby red velvet with a curved yet tall collar.

"Reno." Another red head exclaimed as he approached us from the checkered steps. Will was looking frightened as he walked behind him. "Will-" I said but Reno tugged the back of my coat to hold me by him.

"Axel." The red head by me said as he nodded to the protector. "This is the protector's castle…You must tell no living souls about our hide away. We are to be hidden. You may go out in the daylight but do not raise suspicion…" Reno's rules went on and he told us of our rooms and he introduced us to the light-hearted protectors.

Their beauty was captivating. The castle was brilliant. "This is your room." Reno said and he left without another word. Will followed in my room and he sat down next to me as I stripped off my clothing. I unbuckled the chains on my boots as Will spoke.

"Leon…I can't believe this…well I should say that I have never put dreams into a doubt but this is remarkable. Simple maddening." He said with a fascinated lapis eyes glimmering.

"…It is all maddening…" I said and Will heard the sorrow in my voice. My face rested on his shoulder as he hugged me. "Leon…We have each other…no Lionheart will worry…" He said as he rubbed his hand up and down my back.

He kissed the top of my head which made me feel young again. We were but the same height but I felt vulnerable…I was a protector and I wasn't ready for all of it.

As the years went by…I had no one to watch over. I was still training. Will and I spent the hours of the night sitting on top of the cathedral like dome with our friendship hands locked together.

I remember how Will and I had that one night… "Leon…I couldn't live without you…you are all I have." He said and I hugged him tightly. His lips hovered above mine and I parted my lips. We were so close. I didn't understand what he wanted. It seemed strange.

"I need you too." I said and he locked eyes with me for the longest time. There was a connection pulsating through him. "Leon." Reno disturbed us as his silent entrance made Will jump a little.

"Will has to study in the library with Axel." Reno spoke with strange cold words. Will got up and captured one last glance with me before he went up the stairs with Reno following behind him. Axel exchanged odd yet fierce glares with me as we walked past on the endless stairs.

One day…flames and knives arose in the village. Axel's predictions of William's readiness fell wrong. Will bit his mortal named Jane Conway…The villagers started finding us and attacking that night.

I remember Reno grabbing Will by the back of his hair and forcing his face against the cellar wall. The smell of blue blood from William's face entered my senses. I watched Reno kill Will.

The violent ripping of marble skin and the waterfall of blue blood leaking from Will's mouth. The shrill snarls from the other protectors echoed the swampy canals of the cellar.

Axel held me back as burning, raged hissing clawed ricochet through the underground canals. I watched them go after Will. He had failed as a protector.

Will's eyes looked at me and tears stained my face as Axel chained his hands to my upper arms. My head was brutally compelled against the wall. "Will!" I exclaimed but Axel dug his nails into my neck.

My best friend's body fell to the cobble ground and his open eyes had the look up death. The protectors hovered around him for a moment and Reno ripped the ring off Will's finger.

The ring that had a flip out blade with our venom. The ring that was used for hunting the wild life thus we could protect our weapon-like teeth from causing a repertoire of rampages…It was like our new heart. If it was taken off by the protector leader then we were nothing but a corpse.

Reno hurled Will's ring into the water and the silver sound stung me. Axel dug his nails into me deeper.

The red wound on Will's finger grew violette at the edges and he choked away his last breath. Reno looked at him with pure hate. "Let this be a lesson to you all. Be the protector, not the predator." The red beauty spoke and Axel lead me back to my room.

I remember lying in my room with the repeated haunting memories of watching Will die…The other protectors seemed to be colder and harsher until at last I was assigned my first mortal.

It was Cloud. He had not been born yet but Reno told me the day I was assigned to work. He said I would make a permanent protector.

I remember how in the late 1800s when the protectors fled from the castle and had to disperse. The demons attacked. They had bluish skin and black spiked hair. The protectors fought a bloody battle as I hide in the forest. The protectors became scarce.

My mind grew lonely as I stayed in the empty castle. I reviewed my past...my cruel memories. There were centuries and centuries until it was the 1980s. It was the weirdest looking decade but...

The day finally came. Cloud was born. My thought reading and dream reading was incredible. I could finally use it. The blond had the most elaborate dreams with vigorous senses. I tilted my head fondly as I sat in the tree outside his window.

Years past and Cloud reached his early teens. The nights seemed like the only thing I had to live for. I was a permanent protector and I did not want to give up. This was my mortal…my only angel…my only light in my darkness.


	15. Beautiful Nightmare Ch12

Leon's POV:

It's been so long…I've never had a _real_ and _meaningful_ kiss before…well I've never had a kiss like _that_ before…Except for Will but I didn't feel the same way for him…I am in deep love with Cloud.

I know it was just on the cheek but it was so…alluring. My fists clenched as I stared sternly at the staircase. Cloud was rummaging like a mad man through his chestnut dresser as he packed his small night bag.

His lips were so toothsome…I never imagined how good it could be. My senses were going batty because I could smell his kiss…his warm blooded lips. I wanted to go in his room and give him the limitless night he always dreamed of….but I knew I could never do that to Cloud…

If only I could be human…but would he still love me like he does? He would probably just be head over heals with that ruttish delinquent Reno…the man who turned me into this horrible blood sucker! I cannot have Cloud sauntering around with that hostile leech…I would never want Cloud to become a vampire…

Cloud shouted my name when he was with Reno…When I saw Reno and Cloud sensibly having intercourse _twice_…why did he shout my name..? I wanted to save Cloud because I knew that Reno would soon bite Cloud…

If he bit Cloud then I would die because I would fail as a protector…Cloud was my human to protect and having another vampire biting him would cause my immortal life to end entirely…

I wanted to tell Cloud that Reno is a vampire but I knew I would be breaking another rule…If I were to tell Cloud then I would be banished because Reno is my leader…

He is still my leader even though he left with the other vampires from the vampires' grand castle to hide in Winchester and beyond…I had to have Cloud somehow discover so I could be around Cloud and protect him…. I would never want Cloud to become a vampire…

But something lures me to consider biting him…his scent is just too maddening…I could just walk up behind him and kiss up the back of his shoulder…all the way up to his neck with that tantalizing, lively heartbeat and then I would…

"Leon! I'm ready!" Cloud said with excited eyes and he practically tumbled down the stairs with his hurrying, clumsy feet. His hand brushed along the chalky cobalt walls as he tried to balance his unzipped bag in his other hand. I helped him by zipping up the stiff zipper and he smiled brightly at me.

His clock chimed 4pm and I heard a bicycle bell dinging far away on the outside street. My eyes were sharp and alert but I kept my head down at the zipper. "Leon? Are you okay?" He asked and his breath was so close. I wanted to kiss him…but I couldn't…

How could Reno control himself? I could barely focus on my screaming thoughts as my blood thirsty beast wrangled inside my hallow heart. My mind kept saying _Don't do it…Control yourself_…but my venom lurked around inside my hungry veins…I needed to bite.

I strode swiftly into his barely used kitchen and I practically massacred Cloud's kitchen towel with my canine teeth. The green venom burnt the rooster printed towel like a scorching fire. I turned on the sink and threw the burning towel down inside it. The garbage disposal's knife shredded the towel and then swallowed it down into its ravenous drain.

An unearthly growl ripped through my throat and my eyes flashed into the shade Champlain black marble… so monstrous. "Leon…" His voice rang in my ears and I gripped the counter as I tried to control myself. Cloud braced himself in the door frame with utter fear spilling through his tearful eyes. I never wanted him to see me like this…

My eyes flashed back to slate grey and I collapsed onto the linoleum floor. Cloud rushed to me and hugged me tightly as I tried to prevent my tears. "Leon…you're not a monster…you're just hungry…When is the last time you ate?" He asked me and my fingers tangled through his hair lightly.

His sugary mandolin voice calmed me slowly and I took in an unnecessary breath. My eyes glimmered up to meet his gaze. "I'm just weak…after the vampires attacked me in the forest…I lost a majority of my blue blood…" My Gothic voice caressed to form his answer.

I closed my eyes tightly…his face was so close…I wasn't ready now…I couldn't kiss him yet… "Let's go then. Cloud. I'll meet you at the head entrance of Dead Raven Path…I need to go feed…" I whispered into his ear. I had to get away quickly…But my urges to seduce then kill him were so burly…

Cloud's hands slid up my clothed chest and his cheek rubbed up my neck…I knew he wanted me too. A growl whispered through my mouth into his ear. "Leave me…now…" I warned him through my clenched teeth.

The blond got out of my grasp and I fled out of his back kitchen door. The wild air cleared my mind and I took off into the jagged trees up above. I was slower then usual…I was pushing my power too hard.

My memories flashed as I reached the bottomless lake in Death Raven Path. I made a fist and flicked out the blade on my hunting ring. The blade pierced through my gums above one of my fangs and the ring filled with my venom. I was too weak…I fell out of the trees and into the still water.

I was sinking quickly but I dared to open my eyes. My eyes flashed black again as I smelt the shimmering beauties. The mermaids were sleeping on a ledge above the abyss depths. The water sliced around me like a deadly torpedo as I snatched one of them into my hands.

A crack and a scream blared from the purple haired female as my hunting ring's venom blade pierced through her neck. I retracted my ring's blade with a flick of my hand and then sucked up the flowing crimson blood.

The blood quenched me but I still needed more. I tore the tail of another one swimming away and the male's eyes were panicked as I sliced his sweet throat with my venom filled ring.

I repeated this until my eyes flashed back to grey…The bodies of my victims had their eyes closed like sleeping angels but their throats were gashed and their heartbeats were dead…I'm a monster…

Reno's grinning teeth flashed through my mind as I remember how he bit me in the lake…and turned me into a vampire… I swam back up to the surface and I dried almost instantly as I ran to the start of the path.

My footsteps stopped as I saw my beauty waiting there for me. I fixed my mangled hair and I wiped my wet mouth. My clothes were as dry as a summer's drought and I walked forward to him.

The blond turned around and I smiled at him warmly. Could this really last…? I am so different then Cloud…But no matter how enticing times may be…I will always be there for him. "Shall we? It's getting near sunset and I need to honour my guest properly." I spoke and I took his hand in mine causing him to blush.

My grin set his heartbeat at a furious knocking tempo but it didn't bother me at all. I was healthy and controlled…but I was still afraid to kiss him…It just wasn't the right time. I lead him down the weeded path and his eyes were amazed. He's never walked down this far.

"Cloud…what do you want me to cook for dinner? Steak, soup, carrots? Do you like wine?" I asked him like a fool. It was too quiet and I could feel the awkward thoughts emerging in him. I still couldn't read him anymore but I could still tell. He was just a bit obvious at times…

"Wine? …um Leon?" He asked with a questioning, worried voice. "Yes?" I said and I questioned myself. Did I say something wrong? "Are you trying to get me drunk?" Cloud asked and I blushed as red as fresh blood.

"No! Of course not, Cloud!" I said and he started laughing to himself. "I was just joking. I'll have a drink and I don't really want to talk to you like a waiter so…" His voice told me and I understood. "Sorry…I just haven't had a guest in…well I've never had a guest…" I admitted and his thumb stroked the top of my cold hand.

"I understand, Leon. You don't need to impress me. You have already by inviting me…Are you going to be annoyed if I ask questions?" He asked me as we took a left turn through a tunnel of trees.

"Of course not. Go ahead, love." I said as my eyes focused on my memorized path. "Okay um…do you live in a castle?" Cloud asked me and I let out a charming grin. "Well I don't want to spoil that…" I said and his masculine lips spoke again.

"Do you sleep in a coffin?" He asked me and my eyebrows rose high. "Well…I'm not sure if you would classify it like that…It's hard to explain. I'll have to show you how I sleep." I ended my sentence and I realized how completely suggestive that was. Cloud was blushing like a red cardinal.

"Um okay…do you have a car? A bat mobile?" He asked and I didn't find his snickering amusing. He realized I was getting a little pestered. "Sorry…" He said and he narrowed his eyes at the ground below his feet.

"I do have a car. I use it maybe once a month. I can't fly everywhere. People are not that oblivious, love." I sneered lightly and he smiled again. "Can you turn into a bat?" He asked and I shook my head _no_. "That is only the eastern vampires." I told him and his eyes widened in surprise.

"…Is that shocking to you?" I asked him and he nodded slightly. "I suppose…" He merely spoke out. We were almost there and I tilted his chin up so he would stop looking at the ground. I did seem to intimidate him by taking him to my castle…

"Leon…it's…beautiful…" He marveled as we strolled through the 20 foot twisted iron gates filled with hiding spiders and ember coloured ivy. The castle looked like a Gothic cathedral and Dracula's castle combined. My masquerade-like collar shook in the wind as we took a turn into the side of the castle.

Cloud's neck strained as he peered up at the 60 foot towers of the fortress. I led him through the tunnel that went straight through to the courtyard in the middle of the square shaped castle. The tunnel was lined with torch sconces that made the tingling shiver go up Cloud's spine.

As we reached the outside air again he gasped at the beauty of the courtyard. The cold, grey stone statues of crying angels and the white rose bushes. Colours of macabre white, grey, black, green and red flourished above the baby green clover covered floor of my courtyard.

Ancient sculpted statues of nude Greek men and women lined either side of the eight dark cherry wooden doors on the sides of the circular courtyard. I walked the perimeter with Cloud and he stopped in front of a long haired statue of a man.

His robin egg coloured eyes looked it up and down then he smiled with daydream eyes. A 5 foot white lion statue stood on both sides of the tunnel that we walked out of.

"I hardly ever come out here…I forgot how peaceful it is in the courtyard…" I whispered awkwardly and he blushed when he realized he was daydreaming over the nude statue.

"It's more then peaceful…it's like another world…" Cloud said and he let go of my hand. His eyes were full of exploring youth and he strode over to the fountain in the middle. The height of the basin came up to his knees on his long legs and the tower center went high over his head that he had to look up to see it.

It was the center piece of it all…a 20 foot stone black water fountain. The circle basin's diameter was about as large as Cloud's kitchen and it was filled with ink black still water. Dragonflies perched on the rustic upper circler layers of the dew drop dripping fountain.

A bird stood on the ostrich egg shaped top where the water usually comes out of. Little white flowers hung like miniature morning bells on the circumference around the basin.

"This is like a swimming pool…" Cloud said with a speechless look on his face. I left him alone as I went to go put his bag in the parlor. My footsteps echoed through the tunnel as I returned. I saw Cloud freaking out and reaching inside the water.

"Cloud! What happened!?" I asked him and I rushed toward him in my horse riding knee high boots. "I was leaning over the fountain and my house key necklace fell inside!" He rambled as I yanked him backwards onto the white stone bench.

"The water is too deep. I'll just get the key for you." I told him sternly as he dried off his hand on his jeans. "It's only like three feet isn't it? I'll do it. I don't want you to get wet over my necklace." He argued but I sat him back down on the bench.

"It's my necklace and it's my fault. I'll get it." He said and he sat on the edge and put his legs in. "I can't feel the bottom…" Cloud muttered with frustration as he lowered his body more. "Its depth is one fathom…" I told him and he clearly didn't know what I meant.

"…5280 feet…" I said and his skin drained to pearl white. He almost fainted but I sat him back down on the bench. I dove in and snatched the falling necklace. "Got it." I said with a slight superhero look on my face as I strode toward him. I dried instantly as I sat next to him. "Thanks…" He said weakly as he collected his consciousness back.

"I'll put it back on you." I offered and I tied it in a tough knot behind his neck. My face was so close to his and his eyes were alert again. I put my hand on the key above his heart and my lips moved a little. He stood up and so did I like puppet master's slave.

Below his knees was dark with soaking wet ice water. I flicked out my ring's blade and I cut his jeans below his knee off. The edges of his fresh cut pants burned from the venom. I traveled upward to meet his face again and I cupped my hand on his face.

Cloud fainted when I moved closer and he fell on the clover floor behind the bench. It was as soft as a cushy mattress. I went next to him on the clovers. I felt like I was floating above the ground. Like I was so light weight…It was so…magical.

"Leon…" He said as his eyes opened again. My face was above him in amazement like he was a mermaid washed up on shore. Cloud breathed normally and I was cautiously brushed my fingers through his hair.

His face tilted up to meet mine but I turned away. My face lowered and I put my lips next to his ear. "I'm sorry…I can't…" I told him and I backed up above his face again. "…I understand…" He told me and I could smell the hidden longing in his voice. His salty tears fell down his cheek and hit my hand.

"What's wrong, love?" I asked him but his face was blank and strongly masculine like the statue he was looking at earlier. "…I want to be like you…" He begged and he gripped my bicep strongly with his clawing nails that didn't hurt me.

"No you don't…I want to be like you…I want to be human…" My voice said and his eyes were full of rage. My pale Italian lips were holding in my hisses and growls. The lips I wanted to someday kiss him with…

"Leon! You can't be a human again! I can only become a vampire for this to work and you know it! So why don't you just bite me already?!" Cloud's voice was as strong as a samurai's and his eyes were piercing with rage like a bloody sword.

I got up in utter fury and stomped away from him. I faced one of the crying angels that was three feet above my head and it leaned over me enough to cast a booming shadow.

"You know why I can't bite you…I'm your protector and I'll be killed if I bite you…Then you would be alive and I would be dead…WOULD YOU WANT TO LIVE AS AN IMMORTAL AND SEE MY BLOODY DEAD SKELETON FOR THE REST OF YOUR LIFE!?!?" I shouted and I turned around to see him right behind me with tears leaking from his eyes.

"Oh Cloud…I'm sorry…I didn't mean to yell at you…it's just one of my worst nightmares…I can't be the one to bite you and if one of the other vampires bite you then they might get too carried away and rip you to shreds…" I told him and he buried his crying face on my shoulder.

"I want your venom…" He whispered into my tear stained coat. I made a fist with my left hand which held the venom filled ring. "I can't turn you into a vampire without losing my life…" I lied to him as I hugged him tightly. I stared at the sterling silver ring on my middle finger. I didn't want to turn him into a vampire…but I wanted to at the same time…

"Leon…I love you…" Cloud told me and I nuzzled my face in his jasmine scented hair. He would love to be a vampire…To have the ability to do everything…To have the power to fly…To have the strong senses that I have.

My vampire senses could hear the spider in the web spinning her invisible net all the 75 feet above my head on the tip of the tallest tower. I could fly to the bottom tip of Africa and back to north England in about 5 minutes.

It was all so powerful and magical but it was nothing compared to my dreams of being human again…If our human lips could touch…If my human hands could hold him…If I could truly love him… "I love you too, Cloud…" I whispered to him and a tear dripped down from my eyes.

"C'mon Cloud…you must be freezing…" I told him and I took his hand as we walked through one of the eight massive, giant doors. His eyes recovered from the tears and he held my hand tighter. Cloud's heart beat practically echoed through the torch lit corridors.

"I am a little cold…" Cloud admitted with his provoking deep voice. He couldn't hear it but my vampire senses could…I would miss that heart beat if I sliced him with my ring…I couldn't hurt him…Not now…not ever..


	16. Beautiful Nightmare Ch13

Cloud's POV:

There was no longer a concept of time…everything seemed to stay still…I felt like I was no longer able to see…As if I had new eyes from a sudden metamorphosis. Now I could actually see poetry in the world. Leon escorted me through the various corridors of rich red tapestries and melted looming candle light.

Delicate darkling thrushes and midnight blue jays flitted on the outside of the 20 foot Gothic stained glass windows. The vanishing sunset filtered an eerie orange into the stone walled caverns of the castle.

I felt as if I could never cry again…Leon was holding my hand softly and cautiously until I moved the slightest. He let go yet I was too afraid to grab his hand back even though my instincts to do so blistered like the sheer light of the morning sun.

My eyes wander over the casted sunset shadows as red as the richest blood a vampire could want. His silent lips drew my attention. They were sealed in an ivory straight line. I opened my mouth to speak but he suddenly turned stridently to me and my light indigo eyes opened in fright.

"If you ever need me, my room is down the left hall, then up the center stairs to the third opening and five doors on the right." Leon told me and I snapped out of my daydream. I was too intimidated to ask him to repeat it so I just looked at my feet while I followed him. _'….third floor…center stairs…right hall?'_ My thoughts processed.

"You are hungry, correct? I'm glad I have you for dinner." Leon phrased in a way he probably didn't mean to sound. "….me for dinner?" I said with a raised eyebrow and his eyes shot wide and black in embarrassment.

"….I meant…I'm glad I have you here so I can serve you some food." Leon calmly spoke but his nails dug into his palms to have himself refrained from making anymore cute comments. _'I wish he was having me for dinner…..what am I thinking?! I shouldn't be a pervert now…after all, Leon won't even consider biting me.'_ I thought deeply.

"I'll bring you to your bedroom before dinner is ready. You may want to get settled and rest. You've had a long day." Leon stated firmly yet a smile was lit in his murky eyes. "I'm not tired, Leon." My voice sounded a bit irritated; I was hoping Leon wouldn't notice my annoyance yet he did.

"Is something bothering you, love?" My dark prince asked me and I stared at my shoes as we walked up one of the glossy stairways. _'Yes. I'm a young man and I have sexual needs sometimes. Is that too hard to comprehend?'_ My roaring voice exclaimed in my delicate skull. "…I'm just nervous." I said. It wasn't a lie. I didn't want to mess up in front of him…he is too good to lose. All I need is to calm down…

The murals glistened in the dome of the staircase tower over our heads. Windows leaked in bluish shadows and my spine crawled with a sudden fearful sense. The faces of the crying realistic humans seemed to have their eyes follow on me….the burning fire engulfed their families as demons tore and clawed over the fragile white flesh of the mortals…I could hear their voices…Screams…

"Cloud." Leon's raised voice startled me. He had his soft hand on an open carved door when I looked at him. His rigid eyes looked like he was going to smack me. "….Oh sorry. I just got…distracted." I said and I walked into the waiting guest room. He closed the door behind us and I froze in my hushed steps.

I gazed over the lush sheer black canopy curtains over the grand antique carved bed. The vertically striped walls of the room were the colours of fresh scarlet sunsets and cream white doves. My tattered suitcases lied shamefully on the ornate carpet…it was embarrassing how I felt so out of place here.

Without a word, Leon swiftly started unpacking my suitcase. I practically tripped like a fool to walk over him instead of aimlessly admiring the stitching on the royal blue curtains. "…Is there something wrong? Are you thirsty? Oh I'm a terrible host…I should have offered you a drink—"

"No just allow me…It is my stuff after all." I said as firmly as I could; I obviously knew it was hard to stop a vampire from doing what he wants. I didn't want to be pampered…this wasn't a resort spa in the Bahamas. This was a chance for me to impress and be proper to the only person I have ever fallen for.

"Are you sure because I don't mind to help you unpack your suit—" Leon's voice went silent as I ripped the suitcase away from his grasp and all my clothes fell out in the process. My eyes widened as large as a helpless deer in headlights.

Leon's eyes glimmered with amusement at my clumsy actions. He simply flung my clothing lightly over his arm then folded them properly. "Would you like to see the rest of the castle? We…I…have quite the library." My protector stated with a sudden trip in his voice. "We…?" I questioned him and he slammed the dresser drawer shut with sharp anger.

"All done." Leon changed the subject and he zips up my grey, pitiful suitcases. "..Thank you." I replied out of my wondering mind….What did he mean by _we_? "Now then. You are free to look around. I'll be in the kitchen. Don't worry, I'll find you when dinner is ready." The tall brunette spoke with his bone-white fists tight at his sides. He left the room abruptly before I could even ask him to show me the library.

I sighed to myself and sat upon the delicately threaded bedding. "Maybe he is just… nervous so he messed up a sentence…was he thinking this was our castle?" I spoke to myself in awe. My lips shut together when my thoughts of him hearing my talking provoked me to quiet.

A tiny smile fell over my young lips which my uneasy finger tips dared to touch. I closed my eyes softly and listened to the distant sounds of matches striking to light tall wax candles. Only I could hear them…only Leon and I were here…alone together…_ 'Our castle…'_ My stunned thoughts rang out like a grandfather clock's chimes.

The window cracked unexpectedly which sent me to fall off the bed in fear. My keen eyes dared to peer over the bed and I saw a thin slice in the window. I shifted my face up higher to see and the glass shattered all over the red and gold oriental carpet. My own pale hands covered my face and I crouched back down besides the bed as the shards sliced through the air.

_'Your blood…your eyes…I see you rot...rot…rot…'_ A dark hypnotic voice rings through my trembling mind. "W-what?" My voice shook out and an icy hand grasped at my throat. My mouth hung open as I choked. "L…LEON! HELP!" I managed to say as I felt the nails rip off my skin.

My crimson blood leaked out and my oxygen became scarce. The door of the bedroom flung open and hit the wall. The sound made me gasp and my fingers felt heavy at my covered face. "CLOUD!" Leon screamed in surprise and my terrified eyes opened slowly. "Le…"

I sucked in a breath as if I have been rescued from the vicious waves of an invisible ocean. My eyes looked up with the amazed look of what only a newborn could have. My brunette beauty stood above me. "You fell asleep…and…I heard you scream." Leon spoke with sorrow in his guilty eyes.

"I…shouldn't have let you sleep…I don't want you to have blistering nightmares. I wish I could..help you.." His voice whispered to me as his eyes looked down at my hands around my neck. I felt his porcelain fingers release my hands and he took one of my hands in his.

"Please…follow me…" His pale lips urged me out of my shock. "Leon…It was so..r-real.." I clammed my mouth shut. I didn't want him to hear me cry..I wanted this night to be perfect. No more sorrow.

"Cloud. You and I are not alone. The spirits of the disloyal vampires haunt these corridors…Their life was taken away from them by a small mistake they made. The mistake of lust. They sense lust in you, Cloud. They want to….take you down." Leon explained to me as his hand held mine and his eyes looked glazed with worry.

_'You don't understand, Leon…I lust for you to bite me…I want you to take my life so I can live as forever eternal as you.'_ I gazed down at my feet and I felt Leon's eyes look at me with a change of expression. "I have dinner for you…" He told me with a hint of amusement in his deep voice.

The carved double doors of the dining room opened as if to reveal a glittering midnight ballroom. My eyes widened at the sight of a gargoyle guarded fireplace lit with all the fury of the most cordial passion. Pristine, white dinner candles lit a table fit for the Queen of England and all her loyal guests.

A raven black banquet table runner went from one end of the enormous table to the other. There was a grand throne-like chair stitched with the finest needle and the richest purple velvet. It looked so inviting to me as if there was a spell illuminating upon it. Leon drew the chair out from the table without causing it to make noise against the expensive cherry wood flooring.

I carefully sat into the firm chair as if I was a timid little boy in front of a dainty vase. I was cautious…I was afraid to break it or make a fool of myself. I gripped the studded arms of the chair as my wondrous eyes gapped over the decadent array of food.

It was as if I was dining with a charm master of temptation. He could place a plate of roasted quail and grilled garden vegetables over the lightest whipped potatoes… I would stare at it like a starving alley dog at a rib eye steak.

"Enjoy, my darling." His slow, sultry words spoke to me as he sat at the other end of the table. I didn't want to eat…my stomach was in knots from his overwhelming, sensual stare. Was he trying to make me as scared as a lion's prey?

My shaking hands slipped a couple of times before I could actually grab my fork. It took me forever to decide which of the three I should use. _Inney meenie minie moe_. I chose the one closest to my plate. A crisp white napkin was folded by my left and my eyes blinked in embarrassment. I dropped the fork and it clanked on the smoky red flooring. My manners were awful!

"Sorry…I…" My voice tried to explain yet I felt a gentle breeze rush through my blonde hair and I looked down at my lap in surprise. My white napkin was lying upon it. I peered back up and Leon smiled at me from the other end of the table.

"It's perfectly fine, love. You don't need to impress me. I'm treating you tonight. I want you to be happy." Leon's voice spoke to me. His long sentences made me seep into a sanctuary…I tuned out the rest of my surroundings…the tapestries…the blazing fire…the smell of fresh cranberry sauce… so I could just listen to him.

He watched me…the whole dinner. I ate it all so I didn't disappoint him. Yet I wasn't comfortable with the thought of eating a little bird. It was delicious; a barbarian would have licked the whole plate clean and demanded for more. Yet I simply smiled up at Leon's happy stare and dabbed my mouth with my napkin.

"Would you care for dessert, Cloud?" His English accent questioned me as I stared down when he took my plate. "Leon…really…you don't have to act like my personal butler." I told him as I kept my stare down. His eyes were too seductive…I could tell he had a smirk on his face as I crossed my plain jean legs.

"I'll take that as a yes." He said and he took off the silverware from me except for a dainty little fork. Leon's black horse jockey boots barely made a noise as he walked through the doors to the kitchen. I was alone with a roaring fireplace and eight tall windows embellishing the beauty of the silent full moon.

_'Your flesh…rots…rots…rots…'_ My eyes shot up at the ceiling and I bit my lip. It hurt…I could have just been biting my lip in my sleep…How could I prove I was awake…I pinched myself. "Ow.." I cursed under my breath and a purple blotch formed on my bicep. _'Come rest with us…your eyes are weak…your soul is dying…'_ I couldn't scream…

My regal chair flipped over and I slid over to the flames of hell coming from the open fireplace. _'Rot…rot…rot…'_ The voices spoke in the same demonic, monotone pitch. I saw the floor seep in and bubbled black tar-like liquid in front of me. My head pounded harshly from hitting the ground. A ticking got loud in my mind and I couldn't hear anything. It was as if my life went on mute.

Three hands pierced through the shrieking black hole and gripped their long bloody nails into the floor in front of my eyes. Long scars shredded the flooring as the three nude blood soaked vampires arose from their graves. _'We will be your friends…'_ One of them spoke and I felt my eyes flash as they jumped on me.

I opened my mouth…I tried the scream. I could only hear them ripping at my clothes and pushing me into the fire. _'Rot…rot…rot…'_ The flames made my face sweat and they forcibly shoved me in. "LEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEON!" My vision went white and I felt myself fall onto a cold stone. I opened my eyes and Leon was cradling me like I was smaller than him.

Tears spilled from my eyes and I clung to my vampire's white shirt. "D-don't leave me…" I wept as his secure arms molded around my quaking body. "Cloud…they could get you even if I am in the same room as you. I can't see them since they are a disgrace to all vampires." He tried to explain but I hit my fist against his chest.

"Then why the hell did you bring me here!? To die?!?!?!" I shrilled at him and his face fell into misery. A tear slid down his hurt face and he put me down. He turned his back to me and his coat tails moved with his sharp frustration in himself.

"Leon...I—" "..What are you lusting for?" His voice cut me off with vicious venom on his tongue. I sat down on a chair. I realized we were in the library. Just do it Cloud…tell him… "I lust for…your bite." I said as if I was guilty of committing a sin to him.

He turned to face my sorrowful eyes and his face was wet with tears yet his expression was serious. Leon got on his knee in front of me and took my hand. "I promise…I'll..." I heard him stop and he kissed my marble white knuckles.

My heart lifted in my chest and I fell to my knees. I wrapped my arms around him and buried my face against his swan white neck. "Ah!" He exclaimed in alarm as I squeezed him.

"Thank you…" I said with the widest grin on my face. Leon's mouth tried to smile but he sighed at my grip on him. "I…will get rid of them…but I…won't…" He stopped his words because he felt my arms grow weak against him.

"Oh…sorry. I thought you were going to say you would…bite me…" I said and he looked at me with sorry eyes. His hurt face wasn't going to make me sympathize for something he doesn't want to do. "Cloud…I— " "I HATE YOU!" I screamed and I ran out of the library.

How could he tease me? How could he love me if he won't do what I want? How could I ever look at him the same? My hope was gone. I was an idiot. I ran down the hallways. I didn't know where I was going. I didn't care if the fucking vampires decided to drag me down again. All I wanted was to grab my clothes and go home. I never wanted to see his face again.

I managed to find my room with the first random door I opened. I practically yanked the drawers out of the priceless dresser and emptied the contents into my battered suitcases. My eyes were so blurry from tears and my head was spinning. I could hardly stand straight. My body was incredibly weak. I pressed down on the clothing and harshly zipped the fat suitcases up.

"Ow…my head…" I spoke to myself and I felt my knees go weak. I sat on the bed to recover my strength but all that came to me was a waterfall of depression. I couldn't stop crying; all I wanted was someone to love me back…to stay with me forever… I didn't care if I had to swim the deadliest currents, eat off the floor….or even suffer the pain of a vampire bite. All I wanted was to wake up every morning to see Leon smiling at me…

I picked up my bags and I looked out the window to figure out where the front door was. A crack went up the thin glass and stopped at my eye level. The slice dripped blue liquid which smelled like an ancient corpse. I covered my mouth from the stench and dropped my belongings to the floor. _'I was wrong…I need Leon…he has protected me and he will always be my protector.'_ I told my mind.

My slippery hands hurled open the wonderland blue coloured door and I ran down the hallway to the library. "LEON! LEON!" I screamed for him as I stumbled past painted portraits of royalty. Their powdered faces melted…hissed…bled as I ran by them.

The hallway seemed endless as I tripped constantly over the stretched carpet. I fell as the candles blew out and I felt a hand grab my vulnerable leg. I kicked behind me and heard a loud crunch. My head ticked like a white rabbit's wild pocket watch.

I staggered up on my feet again and felt a razor sharp pain shoot down my spine as my eyes fought to see in the darkness. I felt the walls in the blinding room and smelled the sweet bindings of books. "Leon…where are you…" I asked and I closed my eyes.

_"If you ever need me, my room is down the left hall, then up the center stairs to the third opening and five doors on the right." Leon's memorable voice repeated in my mind._ My feet ran and I found out of the insane maze, a hall lit with candles. I decided to go down it.

"Which door…which door…" I asked myself as my heart slammed against my rib cage. I tried countless doors…all locked. I felt my head pounding as my glassy tears fell down my face.

I tripped again from a grasp at my ankle and I caught my hand on a doorknob. _'Please…be the one…'_ I thought to myself and twisted the knob. It didn't move. _'ROT!'_ The voices screamed and I tumbled back to the door across from me.

I jerked the handle open and the solid door closed behind me. I could see my brunette prince in the shadowy bedroom. The moon lit his face…he looked upset. "I thought I got rid of you!" His voice exclaimed with wrath.

He immediately shoved me down on his bed and climbed on top of my body as his blade from his venom ring sliced up my shirt. Leon looked at me like I was someone else… His eyes were furious as his vampire fangs hissed at me. "Leon!" My horrified voice yelled up at him.


	17. Beautiful Nightmare Ch14

Leon's POV:

What happens to all the words one erases? Do they find their way back to who they were addressed to? Or are they gone forever? The words one erases are killed off before they ever get to be shown. Words of devotion…of detest….of melancholy. Words of a goodbye…a love letter…a suicide note…all imperceptible and compacted at the bottom of the trash bin. If I could take all those words…all those yielded emotions…they wouldn't be enough to describe my feelings for my Cloud.

I buried my distressed face in my black glove hands and tried to stop the pounding headache.

_"Oh…sorry. I thought you were going to say you would…bite me…" Cloud's voice rang in Leon's growling mind. Both of our faces frozen in time… our eyes brimming up with mixed emotions. "Cloud…I- " "I HATE YOU!" Cloud screamed and ran out of the library._

"Rrrrrrrrrrah!!!" I screamed out my bottled emotions and I smashed the mirror of an antique brass vanity. The shards flew all across the ornate room like crystal snow. The large candles dripped wax down their glowing hollow bodies to collect on their ancient sconces.

I felt the night's cool air creeping through the white silk drapes that reflected the blue moon. My trembling hands leaked blue blood and the morbid wounds healed gradually.

I looked up to see my reflection in the few pieces still on the mirror… my face looked like a miserable Picasso work in the sparse, warped pieces. The wind made the flames dance on their wicks and the chandelier rattle above my sanguine, royal bed.

"I'm sorry, Cloud…" My voice whispered.

I removed my blood-stained gloves to see my wounds were healed. I did not want them healed, I wanted to bleed forever like a real human. It sickened me how easily I lived when ever five seconds there is someone, somewhere who has committed suicide; so if I am the disgrace Heaven and Earth, why am I the one who still lives?

Clearly I have no purpose anymore if the man I love hates me because I will not sink my teeth into his flesh. He can find any other vampire; I won't give a damn. It is his body to waste like all the other disgusting mortals in this world; drowning themselves in their idea depression and hopelessness.

How can one be so closed-minded to only see the bad in the world?

If he just wants me to bite him then does he even love me for who I am? No he does not because I am a heartless beast and I am so awful to him.

He hates me because I give a damn about his life and he hates me because I am his bloody protector and I love to listen to his beating heart at night, I love to see his blushing skin full of life, I love to touch his skin and feel spirit running through him, I love to see his blue eyes looking at he like he gives a damn about me too! Is that so uncouth?!

My ferocious fangs hissed and my mouth ripped one of the sheer canopy curtains. It fell pitifully beside my bed in an onyx heap. I viciously clawed a portrait of an original Renoir to shreds and my inky black demon eyes were possessed by Hell.

Haphazardly, I exposed my wrath over the Gothic chandelier. I pounced onto the helpless beauty and crushed every dainty gem that reflected my stupid, evil face. Hate me all you want. Hate me to Hell so I can burn in the flames to make you finally joyous!

I am a monster, my darling. I do not want you to be hurt; I do not want your blood on my hands…

My body went limp, my mind dazed, my eyes rolled back into my immortal mind and I fell off the black iron lighting. There I lied. My long Victorian limps sprawled out on the circular Persian rug with crystals and glass around my lifeless body. I closed my eyes and let my tears drip down my shameful face.

"You can hate me… but I'll still love you… my angel." I whispered as I lazed on my back of my still body. My coat tails torn, my shirt ruffles tattered, my leather rider boots scratched, my room in pieces, my antiques destroyed, my precious collected artwork in colourful canvas shreds.

On the floor next to my wrecked vanity lied a petite music box; the top of it ajar and the decrepit couple twitching like backwards clockwork to the music. The tiny orchestra echoed in my bedroom and the wind carried the notes to my ears. I hummed to myself… it was a tune that could never be forgotten.

The blue light filtered through my open window and the delicate curtains swayed to the enchanting melody. I opened my eyes as I returned to a peaceful, blank state of mind. My irises were back to a pale grayish blue. The tune brought me to my feet once more and I bowed to an empty armchair. "May I have this dance?" I asked. My boots crushed the glass under me and I elegantly extended my arm to grab my invisible partner's shy hand.

I stood up and put one hand on my mate's hip and the other in the air where their hand lied on mine. My mind soaked in the beautiful music and I closed my eyes as our waltz began.

First beat, left foot forward. Second beat, right foot forward and fall back with a trace an upside-down letter L. Slide. Third beat, feet together. Fourth beat, right foot back. Fifth beat, step back with left foot…

My dark brown hair bounces against my framed placid face. While I glided through the rhythmic waltz, my blissful smile was practically stretching from ear-to-ear. Underneath my steps, my battered boots crushed the glass deeper into the carpet and I danced with my arms holding the empty air.

I could feel the warmth from my partner as we danced in the white and gold ballroom. The glittering dome above our heads decorated with elaborate soft cherubs, blossoming pink flowers and doves. Cloud smiling back at me; our fine tailored coat tails spinning and I pull our lean chests together. Our feet glide over the grand marble flooring and he blushes at my romantic rhythm. _"You're so beautiful, my protector…" "You are too, my angel…"_

The music box slows its pace as it begs to be wound up again. I held my partner's hip and feel his warm breath against my face. My fantasizing eyelids stay closed as I waltz in circles around the crystal covered carpet. His smooth hands slid down my back and gripped me tenderly. I held my dance partner close and he kissed my neck while unbuttoning my black suit pants.

My hand cupped around his chin and I kissed his parted lips. With my eyes still closed, my partner topped me slowly onto the torn satin bedding. "Cloud…" I whispered as the wind blows bitterly into the dim bedroom. I smelled the melted wax of the candles drifting toward me. Our aroused legs tangled and the music box rung out its last reeling chimes before the song ended.

I unbuttoned his silk shirt and ran my greedy hands over his chest. "I love you, Cloud. I love you so much.. Please forgive me." I whispered with heavy breaths as his hand cupped inside my pants.

"Oh Leon, Leon, Leon… You are still so perfect…" A familiar voice of my enemy hissed and my eyes shot open with black anger. Reno grinned while straddling his hips on my loin. "Long time, no see." He devilishly said and he licks my lips.

I grabbed his throat and pinned him to the bed. I grabbed one of the candle holders and flung the candle off it to expose the sharp metal needle that holds the candle in place. I stabbed it at his chest repeatedly and my throat shot out wild snarls. He grinned maniacally as the metal pierced through his chest.

He killed Will… my best friend. All because Reno was jealous that Will could hold my hand, that Will could capture my focus, and that Will was in love with me. Yes Will killed Jane Conway, but he didn't deserve to die too!!

One day…flames and knives arose in the village. Axel's predictions of William's readiness fell wrong. Will bit his mortal named Jane Conway…The villagers started finding us and attacking that night.

I remember Reno grabbing Will by the back of his hair and forcing his face against the cellar wall. The smell of blue blood from William's face entered my senses. I watched Reno kill Will.

The violent ripping of marble skin and the waterfall of blue blood leaking from Will's mouth. The shrill snarls from the other protectors echoed the swampy canals of the cellar.

Axel held me back as burning, raged hissing clawed ricochet through the underground canals. I watched them go after Will. He had failed as a protector.

Will's eyes looked at me and tears stained my face as Axel chained his hands to my upper arms. My head was brutally compelled against the wall. "Will!" I exclaimed but Axel dug his nails into my neck.

My best friend's body fell to the cobble ground and his open eyes had the look up death. The protectors hovered around him for a moment and Reno ripped the ring off Will's finger.

The ring that had a flip out blade with our venom. The ring that was used for hunting the wild life thus we could protect our weapon-like teeth from causing a repertoire of rampages…It was like our new heart. If it was taken off by the protector leader then we were nothing but a corpse.

Reno hurled Will's ring into the water and the silver sound stung me. Axel dug his nails into me deeper.

The red wound on Will's finger grew violette at the edges and he choked away his last breath. Reno looked at him with pure hate. "Let this be a lesson to you all. Be the protector, not the predator." The red beauty spoke and Axel lead me back to my room.

I remember lying in my room with the repeated haunting memories of watching Will die…

My fangs grew out in rage and I launched my head downward to rip out his neck, yet Reno's hand encircled a chokehold around my throat.

"If you bite Cloud… then I won't tell any of the vampires that you have and the stupid blonde will be happy. The only condition is: you have to spend eternity with me Leon…we can finally be together Leon. None of the vampires will know and Cloud will be happy… I can fulfill your deepest desires…" Reno whispered and cupped his other hand roughly over my length.

"Never!!" I screamed and I hurled him off of me. His body crashed to the wall and I dove at him with my unearthed fangs. He swiftly flew up to the ceiling and hung like bat on the chandelier. "You are so sexy when you are angry, darling." Reno told me and I pounced at him again.

We brought the chandelier crashing down and I held his wrists together above his head. "I know you'll kill Cloud… you'll kill him, just like you killed my best friend… but I won't allow you to kill Cloud… because I love him more than your thick skull could even comprehend." My snake green venom dripped from my fangs onto his grinning face. How could he be smiling so much? He knew I could kill him right now if I wanted to.

"Leon… I created you… if you kill me, then you will die too." Reno laughed to himself and my black demon eyes zoomed back to a dim blue. I got off of him and he chuckled at my stunned expression. "You are still so young… and still have so much to learn." Reno said and he patted my cheek lightly like a taunting mother does to a child.

"Burn in Hell, Reno." I spoke through my clenched teeth and my head pounded with wrath. "I'll let you think about it, okay? Just use the tower bells if you need to call me." The red valentine kissed my cheek then I punched him; which sent him stumbling backwards. "…Fuck…off…" I said in a sinister voice. My venom leaked from my mouth and my eyes stared at him.

"Awww, I didn't know you could swear. My big boy is growing up so fast!" Reno exclaimed and I threw him with all my might to the open window. He dodged my strength and flew on his own; away from the Renaissance castle.

The bedroom door opened quietly and my huge black eyes widened at the creaking sound. "I thought I got rid of you!" My voice exclaimed with fury.

I immediately shoved the intruder down on my ruined bed and climbed on top of the body as my blade from my venom ring sliced up the white dress shirt. My hypnotic eyes were furious as my vampire fangs hissed at him.

"Leon!" Cloud's horrified voice yelled up to my possessed face. I let go of my lover and my eyes went back to a foggy blue. They swelled with fresh tears and I flew in a blink of an eye to the corner of the room. I buried my ashamed face in my hands and sobbed.

Cloud's body trembled with unimaginable fright and he touched his chest to make sure his heart was still beating. "L-leon… I'm sorry that…I must have came in at the wrong time… I… I…just heard noises and I got scared and you told me to come to your room if anything was w-wrong and I was afraid… that….you …I…I…" His voice stopped and his footsteps went around the fallen chandelier.

His hand touched my shoulder and he touched my crying face as I uncovered my miserable hands. "I… don't hate you…" He admitted and I pressed my finger to his moving lips.

"I am a monster, my darling. I do not want you to be hurt; I do not want your blood on my hands…" I explained and he swallowed his cry a little then buried his face against my neck. His tears drenched my neck and his hands gripped my coat for support.

I wrapped my arms around his body and picked him up in my arms. "Please don't cry… Cloud… I'm your protector… I need you happy…" I tried to hold back my own tears and his azure eyes met mine.

"I am happy… I'm crying because… you love me… I was worried you hated me when I said I hated you…" His words trailed off as I walked on the air over to my bed. I sat him on the armchair and zipped around the bedroom with mesmerizing speed.

I pieced everything back together as if the bedroom was on rewind. The chandelier collected its crystals and hung once more on the ceiling, the vanity looked spotless with every mirror shard in place, the canopy sewn together as if nothing happened, the Renoir painting hung impeccably, the candles lit back on their stands, my clothes ironed and flawless…

"Pardon the mess." I said and I dusted a stray thread off my shoulder. He hid his smile in his hand and looked away. "It's…perfectly lovely, Leon." Cloud marveled at the unblemished room and his complex glowed in the candle light. I opened the music box and it played once more to me.

"Leon…" He was about to say something but I bowed before him and reached my hand out to him. "May I?" I asked and his face flushed red with surprise. "Y-yes…" He said and he placed his warm hand on my cold one. I pulled him to me and hugged our chests together. His eyes closed and his mind grew weary.

"…Are you tired, my love?" I asked and his eyes shot open as if he just heard a fire alarm. "What? Oh, no… I'm just.. resting my eyes." He lied to me and I strode to the grand crimson bed. I lifted the mattress and it exposed a coffin filled with water. He blinked a couple of times to realize what was before him.

Around the coffin was a pool of colour changing water… from luminous blue to lily pad green to golden yellow to scarlet rose red then back to blue again… "The water in the coffin keeps my senses from not smelling blood so I can rest peacefully…and the water around the coffin are my past dreams collected in liquid form… a bit like a dream catcher……. It also has your dreams to…" I touched the water and Cloud's dream of me in Dead Raven Path pictured in the water.

"That's…gorgeous, Leon." Cloud smiled and he looked into the water in amazement. I put my arm around his waist and I took off our shoes. I rolled up his pants and I stripped myself down to my undergarments. His face blushed against my skin as I took his hand in mine. Together we stepped into the dream catcher and walked to the coffin.

"I've…dreamt of this moment." I told him and he looked below him to see in the reflection of the pool… my dream of us sleeping together in the coffin. He looked at me and his eyes closed for a moment. His lips parted and his face moved toward mine. I moved my face a bit in shock and he ended up planting a kiss with his warm lips on my cheek.

His eyes opened in bewilderment and he stumbled back with another blush on his face. "I didn't… know what I was…doing…" He tripped over his words and felt stupid from feeling so inferior.

I caught his hand in mine and I stepped into the coffin. He followed me in and I kissed his cheek back. "I love you." I told him and it broke his nervous posture… his smile beamed at me. "I love you too." He smiled and took my hand in his.

Together, we lowered ourselves into the warm water of the coffin and I wrapped my icy arms around his waist. He held his breath in the water and I smiled at him. My fingers touched his mouth and parted his lips.

My touch opened his mouth, Cloud realized he could breathe in the water and he looked at me awestruck. I smiled at him and pressed our noses together in the water. He smiled back and hugged my body close as he drifted off to a serene slumber.

The pool glowed with images of me biting Cloud's neck and him grinning at the experience. He was dreaming… I gulped nervously and I touched my hand to his face. "I …can't… I'm sorry…" I whispered with remorse. My violet eyelids closed and I inhaled his beautiful scent in the water. _"I am a protector… not a predator…"_


End file.
